Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has pardoned the father arrested at a Loudoun County school board meeting after his daughter was sexually assaulted by a biological male student wearing a skirt in the girls' bathroom.
The governor announced the pardon during an appearance on Fox News Sunday.
Scott Smith was arrested for disorderly conduct at a school board meeting in 2021 after he accused the public school officials of covering up the sexual assault at Stone Bridge High School. JUST IN: Loudoun County dad Scott Smith who was DRAGGED OUT out of school board meeting after revealing his daughter was assaulted by a boy in a girls bathroom RECEIVES PARDON from Gov. Glenn Youngkin..
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— Chuck Callesto (@ChuckCallesto) September 10, 2023
"I spoke with Mr. Smith on Friday, and I had the privilege of telling Mr. Smith that I will pardon him, and we did that on Friday," Youngkin said. "We righted a wrong. He should've never been prosecuted here. This was a dad standing up for his daughter."
"His daughter had been sexually assaulted in the bathroom of a school, and no one was doing anything about it," Youngkin said, before noting that the school superintendent has "covered it up." I’m pleased to grant Scott Smith a pardon. He is a dedicated Loudoun County father who was wrongfully prosecuted and convicted for standing up for his daughter at a 2021 Loudoun County School Board meeting after she was sexually assaulted at school. https://t.co/6dWf88U2b1 pic.twitter.com/WCEvciUfzT
— Governor Glenn Youngkin (@GovernorVA) September 10, 2023
"Mr. Smith did what any father would do, what any parent would do, which is stand up for their child," Youngkin said. "This was gross miscarriage of justice."
In an official statement about the pardon, Youngkin said, “Scott Smith is a dedicated parent who’s faced unwarranted charges in his pursuit to protect his daughter. Scott’s commitment to his child despite the immense obstacles is emblematic of the parental empowerment movement that started in Virginia.”
Youngkin continued, “In Virginia, parents matter and my resolve to empower parents is unwavering. A parent’s fundamental right to be involved in their child’s education, upbringing, and care should never be undermined by bureaucracy, school divisions or the state. I am pleased to grant Scott Smith this pardon and help him and his family put this injustice behind them once and for all.”
