Ryan Utterback, 29, of Gladstone, Clay County, Mo., who last fall joined efforts to remove from school libraries books characterized as sexually explicit, is now facing three charges of inappropriately touching and showing porn to young girls, media have reported.
Utterback pleaded not guilty to all charges.
According the Kansas City Star, court documents related at least three alleged incidents of inappropriate touching or fondling, involving an 11-year-old daughter of a family member (on Christmas day), a 12-year old, and a 14-year-old.
In addition, Utterback allegedly showed porn videos to a girl of only four to six years old. Assembling details from various news reports, apparently the child’s mother was the girlfriend of Utterback; when using the bathroom at their house, Utterback reportedly would make an excuse to call the child into the bathroom and then show the child videos of people engaging in sexual acts. This practice apparently went on for some time until last August, when police were called to the home. In one instance reportedly the child was shown video of her mother and Utterback having sex.
Utterback reportedly attended two school board meetings at which the local Northland Parent Association lobbied to remove books containing “pornographic” material from public scool libraries.
“These conversations are to be had at home and only I have the intimate understanding of what is and isn’t appropriate for my children,” Utterback told television station KMBC News, according to the station.
At one meeting he reportedly held up enlarged illustrations taken from the graphic memoir (and basis for an award-winning Broadway show) Fun Home by Alison Bechdel. (Yes, that Alison Bechdel!)
The North Kansas City School Board did remove two LGBTQ-themed books from school shelves: both Fun Home and as well, All Boys Aren't Blue by George M. Johnson.
Both were restored, however, at least for the present, after the AClU wrote to the board. (Sometimes reasoning actually does make a difference!)
Johnson had this to say:
Next court date for Utterback is March 10.
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Sources used:
KMBC News
Kansas City Star
Courier Tribune (Asheboro, NC)
New York Daily News
The Hill
(h/t to Raw Story where I happened to see this first)