ANNAPOLIS | The Boy Scouts of America kept a file on a former Maryland congressman after a highly publicized scandal involving his alleged solicitation of a 16-year-old male prostitute in 1980.

Robert Bauman represented the Eastern Shore from 1973 to 1981.

In 1980, he was charged with attempting to solicit sex from a 16-year-old. Five days later, scouting executive Ted Taylor of the Delmarva Council wrote the group’s national council. The account is among the 14,500 pages of scouting documents released last week by order of the Oregon Supreme Court. The files date from 1959 to 1985.

Mr. Taylor wrote that Mr. Bauman had been previously registered for two years in the Delmarva Council but hadn’t renewed his registration. The file also noted that Mr. Bauman was on the council’s advisory board.

“He is not active and has no great interest in scouting to my knowledge,” Mr. Taylor wrote to Paul Ernst, who was the director of registration, subscription and statistical services for the Boy Scouts. “I will leave the matter of his future registration in your hands for appropriate action.”

Mr. Ernst wrote back to Mr. Taylor a week later to enclose a confidential record sheet on Mr. Bauman, and he asked that the sheet be completed and returned to identify Mr. Bauman in the future.

“Also, any other information made available to you would be appreciated to support our action of placing this man on the Confidential File,” Mr. Ernst wrote.

Mr. Bauman, who is 75 and now lives in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., couldn’t immediately be reached Tuesday for comment. He told The Baltimore Sun he doesn’t remember being on the council and wasn’t closely affiliated with the Boy Scouts.

“If I ever was a member of an advisory board, it had to have been some honorary thing that they put me on,” Mr. Bauman told the newspaper. “I have no memory of ever serving on this council.”

Mr. Bauman pleaded not guilty to the charge in 1980, although at the time he said he had a drinking problem and what he described as “homosexual tendencies.” The charge was dropped after he agreed to go to counseling.

Mr. Bauman, a Republican, lost his re-election bid in 1980. He later came out as gay and became a gay rights advocate.





Sign up for Daily Newsletters Manage Newsletters

Copyright © 2020 The Washington Times, LLC.