Broomstick Rape Case: Damascus Teen To Be Tried As Juvenile

ROCKVILLE, MD — A 15-year-old former Damascus High School football player accused as an adult of raping teammates with a broomstick will be tried in juvenile court, a judge ruled Friday.

The Clarksburg resident was one of four teens to be charged as an adult after initially being charged as a juvenile. The high schoolers face multiple counts of rape and attempted rape.

According to prosecutors, Jean Claude Abedi, Kristian Jamal Lee, Caleb Thorpe, and Will Daniel Smith were accused of turning off the lights, pushing or pinning down four of their teammates, and sexually assaulting them with a broom handle in a hazing ritual called "brooming."

Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Steven Salant ultimately decided to transfer Smith's case to the juvenile court system, but said it was "incredibly painful" to hear about the offense and "even more painful" to read the victims' impact statements.

"No adult listening to that can just sit and ignore the terrible things that happened," Salant said.

The county's assistant prosecutor, Carlotta Woodward, argued that Smith should be tried as an adult, partially because of the effect he had on the four victims.

In her testimony, Woodward said that the victims are still grappling with what happened to them on Oct. 31. Some are in therapy as a result.

On the other hand, Smith's defense attorney — David Felsen — argued that while the offense is serious, the teen should be tried as a juvenile.

"This is as big a deal as it gets and we're not walking away from that," Felsen said.

The Montgomery County Department of Juvenile Services sided with Felsen's arguments in a report based on the police report and interviews with Smith and his mother.

According to Michael Bertol, a case management specialist with the agency, the department is responsible for analyzing Smith's case and recommending that he either be tried as an adult or a juvenile. The department based its recommendation on five key factors: age, mental/physical condition, amenability to treatment, nature of the crime, and risk to public safety.

Based on Smith's age, risk to public safety, and amenability to treatment, the department concluded that his case should be handled in juvenile court. As for his mental and physical condition, and the nature of the offense, the department recommended that Smith's case be handled in circuit court.

Throughout the hearing, Felsen argued that juvenile court focuses more on the rehabilitation of the child, and adult prison is primarily about punishment.

After more than five hours in court, Salant decided that the juvenile court system should handle Smith's case. He said that children do not think like adults or consider that there may be consequences to their actions.

Image via Alessia Grunberger/Patch