A retired Baltimore police officer has been sentenced to life in prison. James Weems Jr. was convicted on multiple charges after a young girl accused him of showing her pornography. The girl attended a day care owned by Weem’s ex-wife. At the time, the man worked for the day care, driving a pickup van.
After his actions with the girl were revealed, his ex-wife took matters into her own hands. That led to James Weems’ arrest. While he has continued to deny anything happened, the jury has spoken.
Court records obtained by multiple outlets show that James Weems Jr. was sentenced to life in prison on April 14. In November 2024, James Weems was found guilty of three counts of sexually abusing a minor, two counts of second-degree rape, and one count of displaying obscene materials to a minor. While multiple children were allegedly abused by James Weems, these charges stem from his abuse of one girl.
In July 2022, the girl, who was 10 years old at the time, was found by her family watching pornography on an iPad, the Baltimore Banner reported. When asked how she knew about the website, she told them, “Mr. James” had shown her. She then told them James Weems showed her pornography on his phone. He then began molesting her in the van and at the Lil Kidz Kastle Daycare Center in Owings Mills, Maryland.
“I wish Mr. James did not do those bad things to me,” the girl, who is now 13 years old, wrote in her witness statement. She continued, “I wish I could stop thinking about them. I just want to be a regular kid again.”
James Weems was grooming the little girl.
Prosecutors accused James Weems of grooming the girl, WUSA reported. They claimed he gave her snacks and used special privileges to build their relationship. An FBI agent accessed location data on James Weems’ phone, which showed he looked at pornographic materials more than 170 times between January and July 2022. James Weems admitted to watching porn, the Baltimore Banner reported. However, he claims that he never shared it with kids.
His ex-wife, Shanteari Weems , testified that the girl was delayed for her age. She claimed the girl mostly kept to herself and spent time with her sister at the day care. Shanteari Weems recalled James Weems talking about the girl frequently, calling her his “little buddy,” and “my little helper.”
During James Weems’ testimony, he denied any inappropriate relationships with any children. He claimed he only remembered her as a nice girl. Prosecutors told jurors that he was putting on an act.
“This is why abusers choose children,” assistant state’s attorney Zarena Sita said. “It is certainly why you chose a child who doesn’t have a lot of friends. Who is slightly delayed.”
Shanteari Weems shot her ex after finding out about the incident.
In July 2022, Shanteari Weems drove from Baltimore County to Washington, DC, to confront her ex-husband about the incident. While there, she shot him two times. She was sentenced to four years in prison. “Ms. Weems did something that she felt was worth it to protect those children and she’s been held accountable,” her attorney, Tony Garcia said. “Now, it’s his turn.”
“The anguish of learning what happened to her during my watch has taken a profound mental and emotional toll on me,” she said in her own victim statement, the Baltimore Banner reported.
CBS News reports that the parents of the victim filed a civil lawsuit to hold James Weems financially accountable. “This young lady confronted what happened in court. Whether she can emotionally confront what happened in her life remains to be seen,” attorney Jonathan Schochor. Shanteari Weems, who also uses the last name Young, is also named on the lawsuit.
According to WUSA, James Weems Jr. still faces an additional 23 counts in relation to the other victims. These include another three counts of second-degree rape.
If you suspect child abuse, you can call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4453 (1-800-4-A-Child), or go to Childhelp.org. The hotline is available 24/7.
