IMAGES:
Willie Weber, Former Lycoming County Chief Detective &
Little League World Series Team Host (Uncle) (top left),
Dr. Brandon Pardoe, former WAHS head principal (top right)
By Todd Bartley, TalkWilliamsport.com
News@TalkWilliamsport.com
Disgraced former Lycoming County Detective Willie Weber through his attorneys, Donald L. Carmelite, Esquire and Yael L.N. Dadoun, Esquire filed a Brief in Support of Motion to Dismiss on January 3, 2023 with the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The home address of named Defendant Roger Freed has been REDACTED by AUTHOR.
On page 5 of the filing, the attorneys for Weber assert the following under “I. STATEMENT OF THE CASE”:
“Weber, Pardoe, and Freed met with Plaintiff and his family on May 30, 2018, in Pardoe’s office. Plaintiff described the Incident, identified the individuals involved, and confirmed the video was already in possession of the County as the Video. Pardoe and Weber told Plaintiff and his mother they would keep them informed after speaking to the individuals involved in the Incident. (Id. ¶52).
Weber never met with the person Plaintiff identified as video recording the Incident. (Id. ¶53);
In contemporaneous notes from a meeting, Weber recorded B.M.’s admission. (Id. ¶54).”
On background, the Office of Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro thoroughly investigated the cover-up engaged in by Weber, Pardoe and others regarding the criminal sexual assault of a black WAHS baseball player by one of his white teammates referred to in Federal Court filings as “B.M.”.
The “Incident” occurred during the 2018 WAHS baseball team trip in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
“B.M.” as noted in the Federal Court filing was criminally charged by South Carolina authorities in 2021. Due to the fact the case involved juveniles the court records are sealed.
TalkWilliamsport.com has reviewed the charging document issued by South Carolina authorities.
As the Myrtle Beach Police Department Detective Narrative report so tediously outlines in granular detail; the charges were brought during the investigation being conducted by the Office of Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro.
The criminal charges were brought in spite of the best efforts to obstruct and mislead the Myrtle Beach Police Department by Weber, Pardoe and local criminal defense attorney George Lepley.
According to multiple sources familiar with the case; Weber never interviewed B.M. before or after filing his “report” with the Office of Lycoming County District Attorney Ken Osokow.
The Weber “report” was filed from memory and very few notes from the case which Weber readily admitted to WAHS Head principal Brandon Pardoe when Pardoe was told by Weber “he (Weber) had no jurisdiction in the case.”
Neither Weber or Pardoe ever called the Myrtle Beach Police Department regarding the case.
The Affidavit of Probable Cause Search Warrant obtained by investigators from the OAG Josh Shapiro;
is void of any reference to an interview conducted by Weber with “B.M.”
The Affidavit of Probable Cause Search Warrant does include the following: “In notes that Defendant Weber took contemporaneous to this meeting — not discovered until they were obtained via a search warrant issued by the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General — he wrote that B.M. admitted to the sexual assault.”
When was it that Detective “Weber recorded B.M.’s admission”?
From the complaint filed by John Doe #1, #62 Lepley wrote to Pardoe and McCann that
“a substantial number of players engaged in the exact same conduct”
he then described as “inappropriate.” Lepley also identified B.M. in the video of the assault. However, Lepley then threatened WASD with civil action and deposing “any and all witnesses” if his client, B.M. was criminally prosecuted for what occurred on the Myrtle Beach trip.
Lepley concluded: “Our goal is to make sure that one person is not singled out for conduct committed by a substantial number of team members.”
If the Williamsport Area School District and specifically WAHS head principal Dr. Brandon Pardoe was made aware through the “Lepley Letter” threatening legal action against the WASD; of “a substantial number of players engaged in the exact same conduct”, why was each and every 2018 WAHS baseball player not interviewed?
Talkwilliamsport.com obtained the following phone call between Brandon Pardoe in his own words speaking with Detective Aiesi of the Myrtle Beach Police Department on September 28, 2018 with a Freedom of Information Act Request.
Here is the call in its entirety:
At the 6:22 mark Pardoe states:
“I know its in your jurisdiction.”
Pardoe failed to disclose to Detective Aiesi, “B.M.” was never interviewed by Detective Weber.
Pardoe fails to disclose to Detective Aiesi or any member of the Myrtle Beach Police he had already run an investigation of his own.
Pardoe also failed to disclose he had been in the living room of “VIDEOGRAPHER #1” to apologize for that player having to sit out 2 games due to his actions.
The same punishment assessed to the PERPETRATOR who was criminally charged by the Myrtle Beach Police for his actions during the 2018 WAHS baseball team trip.
Pardoe never asks the MBPD; “are you aware of the video of the incident.”
How would we provide that (nearly 5 months after receiving it) to you?
Dr. Pardoe was unanimously approved by the Williamsport Area School Board to his current position of Director Of Student Services and remains employed by the WASD.
Former Lycoming County Chief Detective Willie Weber was hired as a part-time school police officer by the Montgomery Area School District at the July 19, 2022 MASD school board meeting.
Daphne L. Bowers, is the Montgomery Area School District Superintendent, her husband Dr. Timothy Bowers is the Williamsport Area School District Superintendent.
Upon receiving the unredacted Office of Attorney General Search Warrants last year, Lycoming County District Attorney Ryan Gardner announced the “retirement” of Willie Weber from his office.
From the Federal Court Complaint filing:
- In a report that Defendant Weber would author almost five months later in October 2018—the first and only time he drafted an investigative report related to the assault of Plaintiff—Weber recalls informing CYS in mid-May 2018 that he would look into the matter due to his “familiarity” with the WAHS baseball program since his son was previously a member of the Millionaires and Weber himself attended the Myrtle Beach tournament for three years.
- Defendant Weber also wrote that he informed Defendant Pardoe that Weber had no jurisdiction over what happened in Myrtle Beach, “but would assist and make referrals if need be.” Weber also told Pardoe that he was “aware of the trip and what usually goes on during the annual trip.”
- Both Defendant Pardoe and Defendant Weber are also mandated reporters pursuant to 63 Pa.C.S. § 6311, et seq. Neither ever made a report to Child Line concerning what they learned from CYS.
- Upon information and belief, it was also at this time in May 2018 that Defendant Weber gained possession of at least one of the videos depicting the assaults. However, Weber did not take any further action despite also being a mandated reporter and law enforcement official. Weber did not so much as even communicate the allegations of criminal sexual conduct to a single prosecutor in the LC DA’s Office at or around the time he received the report.
- Moreover, Weber did not forward the video in his possession to the Myrtle Beach Police Department (“MBPD”) nor contact them about the allegations, despite the MBPD being the proper law enforcement entity to have jurisdiction over the criminal behavior of B.M. in South Carolina.
This is a developing story on TalkWilliamsport.com.
