Judge revokes bail and sends former LMPD officer Kenneth Betts to jail to await sex scandal trial

LOUISVILLE, Ky., (WDRB) -- Kenneth Betts, one of two former Louisville Metro Police officers charged with sexual abusing teens in the department's youth mentoring Explorer program, plans to plead guilty to federal charges next month, according to court records.

Betts was arraigned in U.S. District Court earlier this month on charges of knowingly distributing child pornography, possession of child pornography, transferring obscene material to a minor, enticement and attempted enticement, among other charges. 

Betts, who is also facing charges in state court, was scheduled to stand trial in January. 

Instead, a notice in federal court records on Tuesday said Betts had decided to plead guilty on Dec. 6.

The penalty range for the charges are 20 years to life in prison. There is no parole in federal prison. 

It is unclear what exactly he will plead guilty to or what sentence he will face. His attorney, Brian Butler, declined to comment. 

Jefferson Commonwealth's Attorney Tom Wine said his office will continue to prosecute Betts in state court on sexual abuse charges. 

In the federal indictment, the allegations against Betts stretch from his first year on the department in 2006 through 2016. 

He is charged with sending pictures of his penis to someone under the age of 16 and attempting to have sex with males and females who were not yet 18. 

Betts and former Officer Brandon Wood are both facing criminal charges and civil litigation in Jefferson Circuit Court stemming from their alleged sexual abuse of teens under their supervision as part of a program for young people interested in law enforcement careers.

Wood is scheduled to stand trial in January.

A state trial date has not been set for Betts, who is charged with two counts of sodomy involving two different alleged victims. The indictment in state court alleges Betts engaged in “deviate sexual intercourse” with one of the victims through the use of “forcible compulsion” over a five-month period in 2007.

And Betts is accused of committing sodomy on July 26, 2013 with a minor “he came into contact with as a result” of his position as a police officer.

Betts quit the force in April 2014 after complaints came to light.

The Explorer program, which has been suspended, mentored teens interested in becoming police officers. Students work closely with officers at events such as the Kentucky Derby.

Police and city officials are accused in seven federal lawsuits of concealing evidence of the conduct by intimidation, destruction of evidence, deletion of information and refusal to comply with the Kentucky Open Records Act, as well as conspiracy to cover up the wrongdoing, according to lawsuits. 

Police are also accused of falsifying reports, deleting phone records and audio files and destroying other records.

An investigation into LMPD’s handling of allegations of sexual misconduct in the youth Explorer program found police made several "mistakes," including a failure to look into possible criminal conduct and determine if the abuse was widespread.  

 But the report ultimately concluded there was no massive cover-up by police or city officials.

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