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Daily Mail
9 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Illinois teacher brought boy, 11, to her home for 'play dates' then raped him
A married female teacher in Illinois has admitted that she took an 11-year-old pupil home for 'play dates' before raping him. Alley Bardfield, 34, is set to be sentenced in September after pleading guilty to predatory criminal assault against a sixth-grade student. The former Decatur Public Schools substitute teacher admitted the crime after reaching a plea deal with prosecutors over the sole count against her. Bardfield was thrust into the spotlight in April 2024, when the victim's parents filed a lawsuit saying he visited her home in Mount Zion for 'play dates' the month before. 'The victim's mother reported noticing her son acting differently after a visit to Bardfield's house,' Mount Zion Police said in a statement last year. 'As a result, she checked her son's phone and social media. In a follow up discussion with her son, he disclosed having had a sexual encounter with Bardfield while a guest at her Mt. Zion residence on March 29, 2024.' The boy's mother said she looked through his phone and found texts between her son and the teacher and photographs of them 'flipping of the camera' together. She also discovered the teacher had allegedly sent her son $700 over several months. The horrified mother took him to HSHS St John's Hospital where staff administered a rape kit. Detectives interviewed the boy shortly afterwards and he told them Bardfield took her to his bedroom where they kissed and she took off both their clothes. They then had sex on her bed, which she usually shares with her husband Casey Newton Bardfield, a construction worker. Police devised a plan with the boy and his mother to get Bardfield to incriminate herself in text messages and recorded calls with him. The boy sent her a message telling her he was going out of town, but hoped to see her again when he came back. 'I love you and I miss you, Alley. When I come back I'll see if I can come over,' he wrote. Bardfield allegedly replied: 'You're always welcome. I love and miss you too.' Police obtained a court order for a wiretap and had the boy call Bardfield later that day, when she told him 'her tubes are tied and that she cannot get pregnant'. 'The victim asked Alley if he came over this weekend… if they could "do it again". Alley responded "Yes",' the affidavit continued. 'These allegations are shocking, especially when the alleged perpetrator is a person in a position of trust,' the department added. 'The Mt. Zion Police Department is fully committed working with victims and their families as they deal with the trauma that results from these incidents.' The boy gave police more details about the 'play dates' during interviews, and Bardfield admitted during a grilling by detectives to having sex with the boy. She also said she gave him money via CashApp and to exchanging naked photographs on SnapChat with the boy, according to police. Decatur Public Schools fired Bardfield shortly after the allegations were aired, and she pleaded guilty as part of the deal 16 months later. The boy's family planned to sue the school district for failing to properly train and supervise staff to ensure the safety and well-being of its students. 'Ms Bardfield's actions have had a profound and lasting impact on our client, which will likely lead to significant physical, emotional, and psychological challenges,' the family's lawyers said in a statement. 'As a result, we will be pursuing justice not only against Ms Bardfield but also the school district as a whole.' Bardfield was a long-term substitute teacher for the school district, including DPS District 61 where the alleged victim studied. The Decatur Public Schools District said at the time that she was no longer employed. 'While none of the alleged conduct occurred at a DPS school, student safety is always our top priority. We are working with Mt. Zion Police and providing support to students and staff,' it said. Predatory criminal sexual assault is punishable by up to 60 years in prison. However, prosecutors agreed to cap the recommended sentence at 40 years. Bardfield will learn her fate at a sentencing hearing scheduled for September 25.
Washington Post
17-02-2025
- Sport
- Washington Post
Mount Zion Prep earns another statement victory; Friendship Tech wins PCSAA title
The Mount Zion Prep boys' basketball team doesn't have the same makeup as the opponents they face at national showcases. They don't take the floor with a bevy of four- and five-star recruits. But what has allowed them to be successful against some of the nation's best, Coach Lafayette Dublin said, is scrappiness, physicality and an emphasis on defense. With those qualities, the Warriors feel they belong on the court with anyone. On Saturday, Mount Zion earned another marquee win by beating Sunrise Christian (Kansas), 62-57, at the Heartland Hoops Classic in Grand Island, Nebraska. With Sunrise Christian coming in at No. 18 in ESPN's latest national rankings, it marked Mount Zion's third win this season against a nationally ranked opponent, the other two coming on back-to-back November days against Prolific Prep (California) and Utah Prep (Utah). 'They take pride in playing the best, and we get the best out of them when the challenge is in front of them,' said Dublin, in his first year leading the Warriors after leaving Rock Creek Christian. 'We wanted this to be a statement game. We said, 'Let's understand our opponent and let's show people that we're really for real, that our first games weren't a fluke.' They wanted to prove themselves.' Since its a breakout performance at November's 5 for the Fight Hoopfest in Utah, Mount Zion (19-5) has garnered national attention as a deep team capable of beating any opponent on any given day. Francis Folefac, a 6-foot-7, 255-pound Siena commit, can create matchup nightmares by guarding any position on the floor and playing off power forward Kameron Wiley. Point guard Jerome Williams, who has a knack for shining against the toughest competition, led all players with 21 points against Sunrise Christian. Mount Zion's postseason ambitions will be centered around the upcoming Maryland Private School State Basketball Tournament, which begins on Feb. 27. There's hope in Lanham that the Warriors will receive an invitation to a national postseason competition, too, but until then Dublin's team will maintain its granular focus. 'We're just keeping the main thing, the main thing,' Dublin said. 'Our goals remain the same. We try not to get too high or too low. We're just taking it one game at a time until we get to whichever championship we qualify for.' — Emmett Siegel The Whitman Vikings have had little time to catch their breath this season. The Montgomery County hoops scene is as deep as its been in Coach Peter Kenah's 23 years coaching in the county and the Vikings have seen pretty much every style and scheme the area has to offer throughout their difficult regular season slate. 'There's a lesson in every game — maybe that's the teacher in me,' Kenah said. 'We're just trying to expose them to as many scenarios as possible so that something new in the playoffs doesn't catch us by surprise.' The Vikings (14-6) are one of several county teams poised to make a playoff run. Kenah's group has scored quality wins over Churchill, Walter Johnson and defending 4A champion Clarksburg. They also tested their mettle early in the season against local private school opponents like No. 6 Paul VI, Georgetown Visitation and Good Counsel. Kenah said the team's challenging slate has helped it develop into the contender they want to become. Senior guard Faith Gardner-Johnston, a four-year contributor, is shooting over 40 percent from three as a high-volume scorer. Against Georgetown Visitation, she scored 23 points and hauled in 13 rebounds in a close loss. 'It's just been really rewarding to see all the time she's put in and how much better she's gotten,' Kenah said. 'She's on the top of every scouting report.' With the playoffs around the corner, the Vikings are feeling confident. Whitman will close out its regular season with two home games: Tuesday against Bethesda-Chevy Chase and Friday against division rival Damascus. 'No nights off coming down the stretch,' Kenah said. — Noah Ferguson Sabrina Anderson, Potomac School: A sophomore who's already eclipsed 1,000 career points, Anderson has been among the best point guards in the Independent School League this season. She scored 22 points against Bullis last week after averaging 29 points per game in two contests the week prior. Baba Oladotun, Blake: Oladotun proved why he's the top-ranked sophomore in the country against Sherwood, totaling 27 points and 13 rebounds in a massive win. On Friday, he scored 26 points and grabbed 10 rebounds against Springbrook. Maya Pitts, Gwynn Park: In a 3-0 week for Gwynn Park (15-4), the junior averaged 28.7 points per game, including a 32-point, 11-steal night against Chesapeake Math & IT Academy South on Friday. Pitts is the leading scorer of a Gwynn Park team that has won 11 straight games. Mason Ridgeway, Riverside: Ridgeway continued a breakout junior season by scoring a combined 43 points in victories over Independence and Stone Bridge as the No. 16 Rams completed their regular season on a 15-game winning streak. No. 20 Meade boys at Old Mill, Tuesday, 6 p.m. Cardinal District final: Forest Park boys at Potomac, Tuesday, 7 p.m. DCIAA boys and girls championships, Thursday, 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., at Coolidge Washington Catholic Athletic Conference girls and boys championships, Feb. 24, 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., at American University Throughout this winter, there was not much to separate the top three teams in the Dulles District. At the end of the regular season, there was nothing to separate the top two. Heritage, Tuscarora and Loudoun Valley all sat with 6-2 district records. The penultimate tiebreaker was decided by each team's record against common opponents, which saw Loudoun Valley drop out of the running and slot in as the third seed. The Huskies and Pride remained equal. So with the regular season district title, the top seed in the district tournament and an automatic berth to the region tournament on the line, the final tiebreaker went to a rare one-game playoff. In a close contest played on a neutral court at Loudoun County Saturday, Tuscarora overcame tired legs to top Heritage and claim its third straight regular season district title with a 50-45 win. 'We were a little weary on the legs, but great in spirit and motivation and understanding what was at stake,' Coach Michael Newkirk said. The Huskies (19-5) avenged January losses to Heritage and Loudoun Valley with a win over the Pride on Feb. 6 and a victory against the Vikings Thursday. A win against Rock Ridge on Friday ensured Tuscarora would play their third game in as many days to break the tie. Senior Joshua Feagin led the new-look Huskies with 19 points while junior Hayden Collins added 14 points off the bench in the win. The Huskies, boosted by midseason Paul VI transfer Colin Byrd, will look to combine last year's experience as Virginia Class 4 finalists with this year's new talent to manufacture another deep playoff run. 'Being able to just pull into getting that No. 1 seed, it just puts you on a certain track,' Newkirk said. 'We were telling ourselves: 'Whatever it takes.'' — Nicky Wolcott For a young program, Friendship Tech Prep is quite accustomed to lifting trophies. On Saturday, No. 11 Friendship Tech (23-7) beat Cesar Chavez in the Public Charter Schools Athletic Association championship game. It was Friendship Tech's fourth consecutive championship and sixth overall since 2016. And yet, Titans Coach Dwayne Shackleford said it never gets old. 'The faces change, but the formula doesn't,' Shackleford said. 'Those kids fell into the formula, they bought in to what we were doing here. That's the main thing.' Shackleford — who grew up in Southeast D.C. before playing high-major college basketball at USC and professional basketball in Europe — uses his own experience to create his formula. In this group of seniors, Shackleford created a class of college-bound athletes who hardly know anything but trophies. One standout is Aidan Haskins, a relative newcomer compared to the rest of the bunch, who transferred over from Friendship Collegiate after his sophomore year. At the time, he wasn't getting heavily recruited. Now, he's a two-time champion committed to play Division I basketball at Hampton. 'Going into my junior year of high school, not really getting recruited a whole lot, having a rough AAU season — I needed that change,' Haskins said. '[Shackleford] had already been eyeing me ever since they'd been punishing us my first two years. He gave me that call in the summertime and was like, 'Do you want to come to Tech Prep?' I was all for it. It's been great ever since.' Now, Friendship Tech turns to the D.C. State Athletic Association tournament. Tech often gets a lower seed than its record would indicate because, in the PCSAA, it doesn't play as tough a schedule as other private schools and D.C. Interscholastic Athletic Association teams. The Titans have never advanced past the second round. This year, Friendship Tech put together a much more challenging schedule. The group feels ready to take on D.C.'s best programs. And by now, the Titans aren't sneaking up on anyone. — Matt Cohen
