More police officers knew of teen sex abuse but did nothing, suit says

Matthew Glowicki | Courier Journal

Show Caption Hide Caption Breaking down LMPD's Explorer sex scandal report Courier Journal reporters Andy Wolfson and Phillip M. Bailey discuss the newly released report in the LMPD's Explorer sex scandal.

Four more officers are accused of knowing about allegations of sexual harassment and abuse of teens in the Louisville police's Explorer Program but failing to act.

Five lawsuits, made public Thursday in U.S. District Court in Louisville, make new allegations and provide details that expand the scope of who within the department knew of abuse claims.

According to one suit, a female Scout identified only as B.L. was "interrogated" and her family later bribed after she reported she was sexually harassed and assaulted by Officer Bradley Schuhmann between 2008 and 2009.

The teen, now an adult, was groped and received sexual messages and solicitations from Schuhmann between 2008 and 2009, the suit alleges. B.L.'s parents confronted the officer and the program's leader, Curtis Flaherty, about the behavior, but nothing was done, according to the suit.

The lawsuit further claims while on an Explorer camp trip in Atlanta, B.L. was confronted by Flaherty, along with former advisers Julie Schmidt, Matthew Gelhausen, Kenneth Betts and Brandon Wood.

Read this: Judge identifies four more police officers in Louisville Explorer Scout suits

The teen was "interrogated" and subjected to "victim blaming and shaming" for about an hour over her interactions with Schuhmann, the suit says. It also alleges her dorm room was searched and her cell phone taken without a warrant or parental permission.

When the Scout's parents learned of the incident and demanded a meeting with Flaherty, he attempted to bribe the parents by telling them they wouldn't have to pay for the Atlanta trip and that appropriate actions would be taken against Schuhmann.

Schuhmann is still employed by Louisville police, though he was placed on administrative reassignment this year amid an inquiry by the department's Public Integrity Unit, which conducts criminal investigations.

Claims made in a lawsuit represent only one side of a case.

B.L.'s lawsuit adds Schuhmann to the list of officers accused of sexual abuse of Scouts.

Wood and Betts were both accused in a lawsuit unsealed this year, one of two Explorer-related suits already made public.

The two also face sexual assault charges in Jefferson Circuit Court for actions alleged to have occurred in 2007, 2011 and 2012. They've pleaded not guilty.

Louisville Metro Police Chief Steve Conrad fired Wood in April 2017, and Betts resigned in 2014.

In their civil suits, all seven former Scouts allege sexual abuse by police officers at some point between 2008 and 2013. Six of them accuse Betts and they all claim the city and police department covered it up.

Timeline: How the Louisville Metro Police sex abuse scandal unfolded

Two of the unsealed suits add Schmidt, now retired, as a defendant. Current Officers Gelhausen and Paul Brandon Paris are each named in one suit, as is Casey Scott, a former Louisville officer now working for the Richmond Police Department.

The newly identified defendants — Gelhausen, Paris, Schmidt and Scott — are accused of failing to report claims of abuse or failing to properly supervise.

All of the suits also name Flaherty as a defendant and accuse him of working to conceal allegations of abuse.

All of the defendants have denied the allegations.

U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings ordered the five lawsuits unsealed earlier in August, finding that neither side had shown evidence to overcome the “strong presumption in favor of public access to federal court records.”

The judge also ruled the plaintiffs can proceed under pseudonyms in all seven lawsuits.

The allegation involving Schuhmann was not mentioned in a recent 90-page, $140,000 report ordered by Mayor Greg Fischer and compiled by Lexington attorney Kerry Harvey, who concluded that investigators with the department’s Public Integrity Unit made significant errors in how they dealt with accusations that teens were sexually abused and harassed in the program.

While acknowledging his investigation lacked interviews from key individuals and other information, Harvey concluded he found no evidence that senior police commanders, including Conrad, worked to cover up any allegations of misconduct.

Louisville attorney Tad Thomas, however, claims in the suits on behalf of all seven former Scouts that the list of allegations make it abundantly clear that multiple adults in the program "appeared to turn a blind eye and discourage the outside reporting or action of those affected by the abuse."

The new allegations

► Scout B.L.: Alleges between 2008 and 2009 she was sexually harassed and abused by Officer Brad Schuhmann. She claims Explorer Program leaders were aware of the allegations and failed to report them.

► Scout F.A.: Alleges between 2009 and 2010 he was sexually assaulted and harassed by Kenneth Betts.

► Scout A.S.: Alleges between 2010 and 2014, Betts sexually harassed and performed a sexual act on him in a vehicle, causing "great apprehension, fear, embarrassment and trauma."

► Scout K.W.: Alleges between 2011 and 2013 she was sexually assaulted, harassed for nude photos and was pressured to keep quiet by program leadership as the department looked into the allegations.

► Scout C.F.: Alleges between 2012 and 2013 he was sexually assaulted and sent sexually explicit material by Betts.

Reporter Matthew Glowicki can be reached at 502-582-4989 or mglowicki@courier-journal.com. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/mattg.