A jury has convicted a retired Baltimore police officer of s*xually abusing a young girl at his former spouse’s daycare in Owings Mills. Subsequently, deputies arrested him on Friday night, November 1.
He is now facing the possibility of two life sentences and has been taken to the Baltimore County Detention Center, where he will remain detained without bail.
“We finally got justice. Put him where he deserves! Lock him up,” supporters of the young victim told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren outside the Circuit Courthouse in Towson.
The jury found the officer guilty on six counts, including second-degree r@pe, s*xual abuse of a minor, and exposing a minor to obscene material.
The victim, currently 12 years old, attended Lil Kidz Kastle, the daycare run by Shanteari Weems, the ex-wife of the defendant.
He was faced with charges in July of 2022.
“We have justice for all the babies. The ones we don’t know about. The ones we do know about. Everybody,” said a friend of Shanteari Weems after the verdict.
James Weems, a retired police officer from Baltimore, was employed to operate the van at the daycare and confessed to looking at pornography during his shifts, which included transporting the children to school.
However, he maintained that he never intentionally exposed the children to the content or made physical contact with them.
The jury did not buy it and believed the girl who broke down in tears following her testimony.
“She is incredibly brave. There are adults who do not have the bravery she has. I am absolutely in awe of her strength,” Baltimore County prosecutor Zarena Sita told WJZ of the victim. “I think the jury made the appropriate decision when evaluating what happened to that little girl, and I think that sends a message that when something like this happens, people will be held accountable.
Prosecutors have charged Weems with abusing other children and may bring other cases.
“At this point in time, our plan is to go to sentencing, see what the sentence is and we can make a decision at a later date,” said fellow Baltimore County prosecutor Lisa Dever.
Dever highlighted that there is a 15-year required minimum and that she requested for additional sanctions due to the victim’s age. The abuse occurred when the victim was ten years old.
Weems’ former wife Shanteari also testified.
She shot him at a Washington, DC hotel in a confrontation just days after she learned of the allegations.
She recently divorced him and changed her name to Shanteari Young. Shanteari remains in prison serving a four-year sentence.
“I’m happy for these kids who are getting justice. I’m just thanking God because this could have went another way,” said Danielle York, a friend of Shanteari.
Hellgren asked what she thought Shanteari’s reaction would be.
“She would be cussing but she would be thanking God too,” she replied.
Another friend added, “She would say he’s where he should be.”
James Weems did not appear to show any visible emotion upon hearing the verdict.
He will be sentenced in January.
Other Articles
