Back in 2022, James Stanley Weems Jr. was charged with molesting four children at Lil Kidz Kastle Daycare Center in Owings Mills, Maryland.His ex-wife, Shanteari Young, owned the establishment.
Weems, who’s a retired Baltimore police officer, was convicted on all counts in November 2024 — three counts of sexually abusing a minor, two counts of second-degree rape, and one count of displaying obscene materials to a minor.
As of Monday (April 14), he has been sentenced to life in prison. During sentencing, Fox Baltimore reported that Baltimore County Circuit Judge Michael Finifter said Weems’ actions and inability to take responsibility “scream out for punishment.”
Finifter added, “He created a lot of the trust he then broke [it.]”
According to court documents, Weems drove the daycare’s van. He confessed to watching pornography while taking children to school, but claimed he never intentionally showed the children or touched anyone. However, an uncle of one of the victims testified that pornography found on the child’s tablet was first showed to her by Weems.
She was 10 at the time at the time of the abuse, which happened in the van and on the daycare’s playground, WBALTV reported. Prosecutors additionally accused Weems of grooming the child, saying, “These types of crimes thrive in secrecy and shame.”
Young — who testified against him during the trial — was sentenced to four years in prison in July 2022 after shooting Weems when she learned about what he’d done. She was not allowed to mention the shooting to the jury.
Her attorney Tony Garcia stated, “Ms. Weems did something that she felt was worth it to protect those children and she’s been held accountable. Now, it’s his turn.”
When she learned about the allegations, Young was admittedly “overwhelmed and distressed” whereas Weems was “calm” and didn’t question her.
One victim’s parent filed a civil lawsuit against Weems back in March to hold him financially accountable.
Young was also named as a defendant in the lawsuit, which claims that the daycare should have known Weems “was addicted to internet pornography and would habitually watch pornography every chance he had.” It also said that the daycare should’ve known Weems wasn’t suited to be near children “without supervision.”
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