By Todd Bartley, TalkWilliamsport.com
News@TalkWilliamsport.com
According to the official WASD Statement from January 9, 2020 regarding the 2018 WAHS baseball team trip to Myrtle Beach which reads in part:
“The Williamsport Area School District does not condone inappropriate and indecent behavior.”
Instead, they reward it with a Gold medal!
ALLEGED PERPETRATOR #1 who has subsequently been criminally charged in South Carolina for his actions during the 2018 WAHS baseball team trip in Myrtle Beach; was awarded a PIAA District II/IV District Championship medal on May 28, 2018 when Williamsport defeated Hazleton at PNC Park, 4-3 in the 2018 District II/IV Baseball 6A Sub-regional Final.
The photo taken with his mother and father with the gold medal around his neck does not lie.
He actually played in the game on On May 24, 2018 when Williamsport defeated West Scranton at Bucknell University, 14-2 in Round 2 of the 2018 District II/IV Baseball 6A Sub-regional.
So, how if a Childline call was received on May 18, 2018 by Lycoming Children and Youth Services and immediately referred to the Office of then Lycoming County District Attorney Ken Osokow (he has a son that used to play for the Millionaires) assigned the case to then Lycoming County Chief Detective Willie Weber (he has a son that used to play for the Millionaires too).
The explanation is commonly referred to as – “The Millionaire Way”.
“The Millionaire Way” as defined by 2018 WAHS baseball team senior Cody Shimp, who is currently a member of the St. Bonaventure baseball team and holds a leadership position as the “Atlantic 10 representative to the NCAA Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), a two-year term that began July 1.”
JOHN DOE #1 former teammate Cody Shimp (brother of Rickey Stryker) shared a Facebook post on September 7, 2018 in light of reporting on the Myrtle Beach incident; in part he stated –
“I learned that as being a Williamsport Millionaire, your (sic) always under the spotlight.
You ever hear of any other stories coming out about other local schools?
No.
That’s because people are jealous of us.
They won’t admit it, but they are.
“No ignorant parents because their kid wasn’t good enough to play for the program.
They’d kill to be a part of a legendary community that sticks together until the end.”
From PART III:
Talk Williamsport has confirmed George Lepley was in Myrtle Beach with the Millionaires Baseball Team to see his grandson Caleb Joy play.
Caleb Joy along with Cam Pardoe, Tanner Esposito, Isaac Snyder, Tyler McCann, Cody Shimp, Ryan Jolin and Cam Dickey had their names released by WASD as part of the RTKL requests since they were the age of majority at the time of the Myrtle Beach trip.
Has Cody Shimp as the pitcher who closed out the District II/IV title game on the mound as a great teammate come to the assistance of once of his sexually assaulted teammates over the past four years, having won a Gold medal along side ALLEGED PERPETRATOR #1, right?
Nope.
The same Cody Shimp who according to his St. Bonaventure baseball bio:
“was on the mound to close out a win for Williamsport
in the team’s District 2-4 Class 6A championship as a senior …
elected senior class president … also played basketball.”
The bio also says, Cody “has three siblings: Ricky, Lachelle and Nastayssia.”
With the ground rules set based on the “The Millionaire Way” –
“and to be a part of a legendary community that sticks together until the end.”
Is that why VIDEOGRAPHER #1 is missing from the photos of the game on on May 28, 2018 when Williamsport defeated Hazleton at PNC Park, 4-3 in the 2018 District II/IV Baseball 6A Sub-regional Final.
Had Brandon Pardoe already given him his punishment of a two game suspension before then Lycoming County Chief Detective Willie Weber even interviewed him?
Did the WASD prey upon the fact that VIDEOGRAPHER #1 was not represented by an attorney?
Was one offered to him?
Did he feel protected since Attorney George Lepley was on the trip and stayed in the team hotel and was visible during the trip?
According to the interview conducted by the Office of Attorney General Josh Shapiro; VIDEOGRAPHER #1 was never interviewed by Weber.
From PART XXIV – “The unmasking of the non-punishments stay true to the Millionaire Way”
As first reported reported in Part XIX, emails were redacted by the WASD. Part XXIV provided the unredacted information.
From PART XIX – “The Millionaire Way” unredacted information is now underlined:
PARDOE INFORMS STUDENTS OF PUNISHMENTS – KEEPS JOHN DOE#1 IN THE DARK
WAHS Head Principal Brandon Pardoe in an e-mail on June 1, 2018 informs Superintendent Bowers of his intentions for punishments until the investigations were concluded.
Date: June 1, 2018 4:53 AM
From: Brandon Pardoe
To: Timothy Bowers
Subject: Baseball
“No Bowman Field! First round of State playoffs will be held at Central Columbia HS on Monday, June 4 at 6 PM.
Unbelievable!
Also, a meeting has been arranged with the (redacted-1) family for June 5, 2018 at 2 PM and their attorney.
Fred will be attending.
(editor’s note: redacted-1 is ALLEGED PERPETRATOR#1)
I plan to contact family today to inform them that their son is suspended from practice and play until the investigation is complete.
I am also going to follow up with the student, (redacted-2) (student who took video) today and parent to inform them that he will be in the same status.
(editor’s note: redacted-2 is VIDEOGRAPHER #1, he will be in the same status as ALLEGED PERPETRATOR#1)
I had a conversation with the mother of (redacted-3) yesterday.
(editor’s note: redacted-3 is mother of ALLEGED PERPETRATOR#1)
She was very defensive and freely utilized the idea that a meeting with their son will not occur unless they and George Lepley are present.
I know that Fred has spoken to George regarding the matter.
In addition, Agent Weber contacted me yesterday to let me know that he as well has spoken to George Lepley about the incident.
It is my understanding that both of these conversations went well.”
Brandon Pardoe, Ed.D
Head Principal
Williamsport Area High School
2990 West Fourth Street
Williamsport, PA 17701
Phone: (redacted by author)
These revelations from redactions being removed again raise serious questions in the timeline being put forward by Dr. Pardoe and the WASD.
How does “criminal sexual misconduct” or even “indecent and inappropriate behavior” amount to the same punishment as video recording such acts?
Unless, the moral compass was, “VIDEOGRAPHER #1 what were you thinking archiving this?”
“VIDEOGRAPHER #1 how could you put the Millionaire Way in jeopardy?”
“VIDEOGRAPHER #1 without that video the case would be “he said verses he said.”
“VIDEOGRAPHER #1 you created a real problem.”
Why were ALLEGED PERPETRATOR #1 and VIDEOGRAPHER #1 given the same punishment when ALLEGED PERPETRATOR #1 was facing possible criminal charges?
Was it another baseball courtesy?
Why was there never a final report on the Myrtle Beach incidents issued to the WASD school board by Dr. Pardoe?
More from PART XIX – “The Millionaire Way”
12-DAY DELAY WHILE THOSE INVOLVED STILL PLAYED
Information developed and obtained by Talkwilliamsport.com through the Right to Know Law shows a 12-day delay in the start of the investigation by the WASD.
The Childline call was placed by a mandated reporter on May 18, 2018.
As noted in PART III of this series:
The family of JOHN DOE #1 having received notification of the ChildLine call themselves, placed a call to WAHS Assistant Principal Roger Freed on May 21, 2018 at 9:34 a.m. inquiring about the situation.
Freed pleads ignorance to the ChildLine call and asserts to the family of JOHN DOE #1 “he has no knowledge of the incident in Myrtle Beach.”
On May 24, 2018 – Williamsport defeats West Scranton at Bucknell University, 14-2 in Round 2 of the 2018 District II/IV Baseball 6A Sub-regional.
In the meeting it was disclosed by the family of JOHN DOE #1, “the video speaks for itself”.
On May 28, 2018 – Williamsport defeats Hazleton at PNC Park, 4-3 in the 2018 District II/IV Baseball 6A Sub-regional Final.
The May 31, 2018 telephone conference Holland referred to as “Investigation”, and included High School Principal Brandon Pardoe (who was on the trip to Myrtle Beach), Lepley and Holland who again referred to the call as “pending investigations”.
On June 4, 2018, WASD Solicitor Fred Holland submitted an invoice for services rendered of 0.80 hours and noted that a telephone conference occurred on May 31, 2018.
Editor’s Note: pending is defined as: adjective – “awaiting decision or settlement.”
preposition – “until (something) happens or takes place.”
On June 4, 2018 – Williamsport defeats Downingtown East at Central Columbia HS, 4-1 in the 2018 PIAA Baseball 6A First Round.
WASD Solicitor Fred Holland submitted a second invoice on July 3, 2018 for a meeting that he attended on June 5, 2018 in regard to a VM (later identified by WASD as voicemail).
The WASD has stated that the voicemail record no longer exists.
The family of JOHN DOE #1 has confirmed to TalkWilliamsport.com, the voicemail in question was left by them.
It occurred at 11:26 a.m. the morning of June 5, 2018 and a follow-up call was placed to the family of JOHN DOE #1 at 12:52 p.m. WASD officials cited FERPA as the reason the family of JOHN DOE #1 would not be receiving any additional information about the incident.
That same day, June 5, 2018 WASD Solicitor Fred Holland attended a meeting with Lepley and Pardoe which lasted for 1.8 hours. That is the billing total Holland submitted to the WASD.
When TalkWilliamsport.com attempted to confirm the time and location of the June 5, 2018 meeting with the WASD, Wanda Erb responded via e-mail:
Wanda Erb <werb@wasd.org>
Friday, December 20, 2019 at 9:32 AM,
Mr. Bartley, Good morning. I received your phone message late yesterday afternoon. As you are aware, the Right to Know Law (RTKL) requires requests for information to be submitted in writing.
Please complete the RTKL request form found at https://www.wasd.org/data/StreamFile.aspx?loc=secureFiles&file=RTKRequestForm.pdf.
After I receive the completed form, the district will respond based upon whether this information is available under the RTKL.
Sincerely, Wanda
Wanda M. Erb, SFO, PCSBA, Business Administrator, Williamsport Area School District
TalkWilliamsport.com confirmed with the Law office of George Lepley the meeting was held at 2 p.m. at Williamsport Area High School on June 5, 2018.
According to the family of JOHN DOE #1, June 5, 2018 was the last time they had any communication from the WASD in regard to the Myrtle Beach incident.
On June 7, 2018 –Bensalem defeats Williamsport at Pine Grove, Walter Stump Stadium 6-0, in the 2018 PIAA Baseball 6A Second Round.
Back to the WASD Statement from January 9, 2020:
“When contacted by Myrtle Beach authorities, the high school principal immediately referred them to the district attorney’s office and the district’s school resource officers, who serve with the Williamsport Bureau of Police.”
In the exclusive story published by TalkWilliamsort.com:
“Unredacted OAG search Warrants first obtained by TalkWilliamsport.com, now available online”
According to WBP Chief Snyder,
“Our agency has never been involved in the investigation.”
From the “OP-ED: Long past time for Dr. Bowers to resign as WASD Superintendent”
This Superintendent and his school board seem to rush into things that matter to them – regularly.
You know, like the
28 days the board took and Dr. Bowers went along with acknowledging the death of George Floyd;
as compared to the more than 19 months to make a statement regarding the Myrtle Beach incident.
Back to Part XIX – “The Millionaire Way”
The WASD has yet to provide an e-mail outlining the directive from WASD Solicitor to WAHS Head Principal Brandon Pardoe giving him permission to conduct the investigation.
When Pardoe adds:
“I do have a recommendation for the interim until we can meet that I would like to run by you.”
Is this his Graham Spanier moment from the Jerry Sandusky case?
From the CBS News report, June 30, 2012 “Report: Ex-Penn State head OK’d not reporting Sandusky”:
If Sandusky is cooperative, Curley’s email said, “we would work with him. …. If not, we do not have a choice and will inform the two groups,” according to the report.
Spanier wrote back and agreed with that approach,
calling it “humane and a reasonable way to proceed,” according to the report.
But he also worried about the consequences.
“The only downside for us is if message isn’t `heard’ and acted upon and we then become vulnerable for not having reported it, but that can be assessed down the road,” the email said, according to CNN.
Subject: FW: WASD Questions
Date: Wednesday, September 5, 2018 at 3:52:21 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From: Fred Holland
To: Timothy Bowers, Brandon Pardoe, Susie Bigger
“If he (Bartley) asks again, I won’t justify it with a response…
Little more than three weeks later in September 2018; Brandon Pardoe channeled his inner Fred Holland when the Myrtle Beach Police Department reached out for answers.
Pardoe as previously noted, said:
“Can I ask who you tried to speak with?”
Audio Player
That’s sure sounds like; “I won’t justify it with a response…”
Prior to your resignation, Dr. Bowers this community demands you begin the process of mitigating the damage caused in the Myrtle Beach case.
The following (updated) steps must be undertaken by the next WASD school board meeting, two weeks from tonight;
The firing of Fred Holland, WASD solicitor
The firing of Brandon Pardoe, WAHS head principal
The firing of Roger Freed, WAHS principal
The firing of Sean McCann, WAHS athletic director
The firing of Susie Bigger, WASD assistant superintendent
The firing of Wanda Erb, WASD business manager
The rescission of the coaching contracts for the entire WAHS baseball coaching staff
The resignation of every WASD school board member (including newly appointed members) who have said and done nothing to address this travesty.
Those folks all volunteered for those positions with all of the information about this case in the public domain for 3 plus years.
These moves are only the beginning of the fallout from the inaction in the Myrtle Beach case on Dr. Bowers watch.
With that in mind; history calls for the immediate resignation and rescission of the extension agreement that began July 1, 2021 of Dr. Timothy Bowers.
From the major motion picture “Gladiator”, prior to going into battle with the Barbarian Horde; Maximus tells his fellow patriots in the Roman army:
“What we do in life, echoes in eternity.”
You know, Dr. Bowers it rings similar to what you said (in writing) to WASD board member Jane Penman:
“In my opinion our actions are more impotent (important) than our words.”
According to a public records search, Dr. Jane Penman as a professor and department chair at Lock Haven University in 2018 had a salary of $191,706.
A number of fact witnesses have brought forth a concern about the permanent residence of WASD board member Star Poole. Is Star Poole prepared to provide proof of permanent residency to the taxpayers she serves?
As Jane Penman previously said,
“In my opinion our actions are more impotent (important) than our words.”
The same can be said for board member Jennifer Lake:, From PART XXX:
January 7, 2021 – WASD school board meeting; “PRESENT: Lori A. Baer, Jennifer Lake, Jane L. Penman, Patrick A. Dixon, Star Poole, Barbara D. Reeves, Marc D. Schefsky, Nancy Somers, Adam C. Welteroth.”
ITEMS FROM PUBLIC
“Carlos Saldivia of West Fourth Street addressed the Board regarding the alleged incidents that occurred in the Spring of 2018 in Myrtle Beach.He ended his comments by asking the Board to please issue a statement and to not continue to remain silent.”
ITEMS FROM BOARD MEMBERS
“Ms. (Jennifer) Lake stated that she is in a reflective time in her life with her daughter in her senior year. She recognizes the influence that teachers and principals have had on her daughter. She wanted to thank them and stated the care and dedication they give to the students does not go unnoticed.”
Imagine your daughter in the same situation as JOHN DOE#1 in the Myrtle Beach case. On second thought, what if you placed your adoptive black son in the shoes of JOHN DOE #1?
Better yet, stay tuned for the upcoming series on JANE DOE#1 who has been identified recently after being threatened by ALLEGED PERPETRATOR #1 which would be a violation of his sentence in South Carolina.
Back to great teammate and leader of people Cody Shimp, from April 3, 2018:
WAHS Principal Pardoe immediately responded to Ricky Stryker threat raised by Coach Ryan Miller
From: Brandon Pardoe
Sent: Thursday, April 05, 2018 3:40 PM
To: Timothy Bowers <tbowers@wasd.org>; Richard Poole <rpoole@wasd.org>
Cc: Susan A. Neidig <sneidig@wasd.org>; Sean McCann <smccann@wasd.org>; Ryan Miller; Jordan Stoltzfus <jstoltzf@wasd.org>
Subject: Request
“Dr. Bowers and Dr. Poole:
I am writing to express my concern over the attached “FB Direct Message” that was sent to our head baseball coach at WAHS, Mr. Ryan Miller from Ricky Stryker. Ricky Stryker has two younger brothers on the team who are integral to the success of the team.
From: Brandon Pardoe
Sent: Thursday, April 5, 2018 6:19 PM
To: Jordan Stoltzfus
Subject: FW: Request
“Jordan,
Can you get me an address for Ricky Stryker?
Brandon”
Did SRO Stolzfus use J-Net, to look up the address of Ricky Stryker? There is no evidence that the WASD swore out an arrest warrant for Stryker relating to this incident.
From: Brandon Pardoe
Sent: Thursday, April 5, 2018 6:19 PM
To: Timothy Bowers
Subject: Re: Request
“I will request from Jordan and he mentioned that he is willing to hand deliver.”
Upon receiving word from Detective Weber
regarding the Childline call;
why did Brandon Pardoe fail to notify SRO Stolzfus
since he had emailed him just weeks earlier?
From PART III:
In fact Myrtle Beach PD reached out first instead of mandatory reporters reaching out.
“Mr. Pardoe’s personal notes reflect that on September 28, 2018, he received a phone call from Detective (REDACTED) of the Myrtle Beach PD.”
“Mr. Pardoe referred the detective to a local county detective (Weber).”
“Detective (REDACTED) number was (REDACTED).”
“Later that same day, Mr. Pardoe also received a phone call from Detective (REDACTED) of the MBPD who asked to speak to the school resource officer. Mr. Pardoe provided the SRO’s contact information, but did not note the detective’s contact information.”
“The SRO at that time was Jordan Stoltzfus, who has not been the district’s SRO for about a year now. Stoltzfus was then, and is now, an officer with the Williamsport Bureau of Police.”
So the idea, WASD school resource officers were involved in the “criminal sexual misconduct” investigation is complete and total fake news put out by the WASD and confirmed by none other than multiple WBP Police Chiefs.
What was learned in this process through another TalkWilliamsport.com Right to Know Law request is that WAHS head principal Brandon Pardoe has the email address of the school resource officer Jordan Stoltzfus, also employed by the Williamsport Bureau of Police.
Why did WAHS head principal Brandon Pardoe or then chief detective Willie Weber (former member of WBP) notify or email SRO Jordan Stoltzfus after receiving the Childline call of May 18, 2018?
WAHS head principal Brandon Pardoe may have provided insight into the reasons why according to interviews conducted by Special Agents with the Office of Attorney General Josh Shapiro.
From: Pardoe: “I have this under control”, Weber lied to ADA Yates, – Exhibit C
The juvenile male videographer’s mother said
that Pardoe came to her house.
He (PARDOE) told her:
“please don’t ever talk about what happened..
I have this under control…”
“When the affiant asked her if Pardoe said anything about law enforcement or police being involved, she said he said:
“It’s not gonna go anywhere,
not to worry about anything..
you have nothing to worry about…
I’m just here to apologize
for not having him play in two games.”
The affiant asked if Pardoe ever told the juvenile male videographer that the Myrtle Beach Police were going to be notified.
This juvenile said: “No.”
WASD school board member Barbara Reeves shared her thoughts on “Black Lives Matter” with fellow board members and Superintendent Dr. Timothy Bowers; an email exchange obtained with a Right to Know Request from TalkWilliamsport.
On Wed, June 12, 2020, 1:38 PM Barbara Reeves (REDACTED) wrote:
“Thank you Dr. Bowers for sharing that information. This is a rough one for me.
While the statement will not be in support of Black Lives Matter, I hope we can all agree that
black lives matter!!!
I am not attempting to cause a debate or to insinuate in any way all lives do not matter, because they do. We are all created equally by the Creator.
This is just a time that people of color need the world to acknowledge that they value their lives.
This is especially true for colleagues, friends and acquaintances. My husband and I have had to sit at our table and have “the talk” with our son; not about sex but about what to do (and not do) if you are stopped by a police officer. We’ve told him, these are your rights. However, at the end of the day, we want you to come home.
He has recently shared more stories of all the times he’s been stopped while in school at U Albany for stupid infractions. He just shared how he was told by certain young ladies in middle school and high school that they weren’t allowed to like him because of what their parents said. This is heartbreaking. He’s always been a well-rounded kid, honor roll, star athlete, and just a flat out gentleman.
Yet, young Caucasian girls were taught that he’s not good enough because of the color of his skin!
Fast forward: I now have a grandson that is due to be born in the next 2 weeks. His father is white and admits that he is clueless concerning what his son will face while growing up. As much as we say racism does not exist, we must admit that it does. Then we must check our own hearts. Right now, if we do nothing or remain quiet, we contribute to the agenda. It’s not enough to have a black friend or a black coworker.
What have you done to support their cause?
We are talking about a people who were considered as 3/5 of a person.
How long should it take to gain the respect of the other 2/5 that makes a whole.
It’s not enough to be colorblind because that means that you do not see me! I heard a man say, we must be like a salad , not a melting pot. You can distinguish between the lettuce, the carrots, the cucumber, and the tomato. What kind of salad would it be if there was only lettuce? I wouldn’t that.
For those of you who read to the end, thanks for your time. Dr. Bowers, we are behind the 8-ball on this one. We must put out a statement that is heartfelt and not simply political, as you’ve stated.
Sincerely,
Barb Reeves”
Sent from my iPhone
Mrs. Reeves, failed to second the motion made by fellow board member Adam Welteroth to open a discussion of opening a third party investigation into the handling of the Myrtle Beach case at a previous school board meeting.
Is Mrs. Reeves in her own words failing to acknowledge JOHN DOE #1 – who is black?
What have you done to support their cause?
We are talking about a people who were considered as 3/5 of a person.
How long should it take to gain the respect of the other 2/5 that makes a whole.
Would Lori Baer, who received the written thoughts of Barbara Reeves and Jennifer Lake as WASD School Board President be in a position to allow Pardoe to conduct his own investigations as well as silence WASD Solicitor Fred Holland?
Previous stories in regard to the incidents in Myrtle Beach have been published by TalkWilliamsport.com then shared to the Facebook page of the then radio stations.
A poster made the statement in regard to this author “this man is an asshole!”
Baer subsequently “Liked it”.
Is that the kind conduct a sitting school board president should be modeling to the staff, students and district stakeholders when she claims to be a “good person?”
A two game suspension flies in the face of the codified WASD policies and procedures on Harassment, Bullying and Hazing which were addressed in PART IV.
Revisiting the assertion put forward by an athletic director who nearly three years to the day he received a “room assignment” from a fellow baseball parent has yet to produce it in a Right to Know law request.
“We dealt with it immediately, when we learned of it,”
–Sean (McCann), WASD athletic director
Editor’s Note: immediately is defined as: adverb –
“at once; instantly. Similar: straight away, at once, right away, right now”
“without any intervening time or space”
The facts in this case all point to protecting a well off white teammate who sexually assaulted a black teammate during a team trip to Myrtle Beach and instead of doing the right thing in real time or ever after the fact; the behavior was rewarded with a gold medal.
Looking ahead at the adults who assisted in the cover-up; the participation trophies may be silver bracelets, prison orange in a Palmetto state penitentiary and significant civil litigation from victims whom the WASD still refuses to recognize.
The good news is, at least the WASD has an Anti-Racism statement on file. It will most certainly be used as evidence in all of the legal cases moving forward.
During the public comment section of the WASD baord meeting tonight a member of the public engaged Dr. Timothy Bowers in a dialogue to which Bowers stated:
“I’m telling you we are following the rules, we’re very adamant about following the mandates…
this is the proper thing to do…our district plays by the rules…
we’re doing what we’re suppose to be doing…
if anything it should be a good thing for a taxpayer to say…
I’m glad to say the school district is doing what they need to do; what they’re supposed to do.”
Bowers concluded, “And that’s what we’re trying to do.”
Dr. Bowers apparently was speaking about Covid-19, but could it apply to the 2018 WAHS baseball/Myrtle Beach “criminal sexual misconduct” case?
Dr. Bowers and his administration doing the right thing in that case?
That would just be fake news.
Just more Gold Medal Behavior from good people who should have called the Myrtle Beach Police Department (since they knew it was their jurisdiction) along The Millionaire Way making it a Great Day to be a Millionaire!
