Former Children Services worker sent to prison for abusing teen

Kenneth Rummel begged Lorain County Common Pleas Judge James Miraldi to change his mind after the judge sent him to prison on Thursday for abusing a teen girl under his care in 2021. The judge sentenced the former Lorain County Children Services caseworker to two years behind bars. Rummel pleaded guilty to a felony child abuse charge in February. The 29-year-old Brook Park man wailed, put his head down on the defense table in Miraldi's courtroom and sobbed. "Your honor, please reconsider," he begged. Some members of Rummel's family, a group that included his fiancée, also were present and also sobbed as he was handcuffed by Lorain County sheriff's deputies and taken to the Lorain County Jail. Rummel pleaded guilty to endangering children, a felony, and unlawful restraint, a misdemeanor, in Miraldi's court on Feb. 23. He faced a maximum sentence of 36 months in prison. As part of his plea, Rummel will not be allowed to hold a job involving the care of children. That was the primary wish of the victim: That Rummel never be able to abuse another child, the girl's former foster mother said in court. The plea was arranged between defense attorneys and the Lorain County Prosecutor's Office with the blessing of the victim. It was a reduction in charges from the numerous counts of rape, kidnapping, sexual battery and gross sexual imposition in Rummel's May 2021 indictment. The Lorain Police Department filed charges after an investigation into allegations Rummel sexually assaulted the teen while working as a social worker in the Independent Living Unit at Children Services. A trial had been set to start March 27. Miraldi called the case "especially difficult" because there was no trial, no evidence presented, and no witness testimony. It came down to "why we're here today, how did this happen?" he said. "It made no sense to me to think that this youngster, this child, this young adult ... who was working full time and going to school and making good grades would suddenly turn on a person of authority. It didn't seem to fit her character, anything that was presented to me that would explain what happened," Miraldi said. What was more believable, he said, was that Rummel knew how vulnerable the victim was and took advantage of that. "She became his prey, within the structure of social services he knew were so important to people. He took advantage of that information, of someone who was trusting him and was vulnerable. And I find much of what she said was reasonable and fit the facts that weren't in dispute," Miraldi said. Rummel 'remorseful' Prior to being sentenced, Rummel told Miraldi he was in court to take responsibility for his actions. "I'm terribly sorry for the pain and suffering my actions have caused and I will live with this for the rest of my life. At the time I did not realize the impact of my actions, but I do now," he said. "I'm truly sorry for the pain I have caused her. I have always tried to live a law-abiding and productive life. My career as a social worker was a major aspect of my life. As a result of my own actions, I lost my career, my license, my reputation and a large part of my future." "It saddens me that I will no longer be able to help children and families that need it, since that is what I have always wanted to do, but I completely understand and accept the consequences," Rummel said. "It's upsetting for me to know that I have let people down in my life due to my actions, but all I can do is work to become a better person." "These are punishments for my actions and I accept that," he said. In her client's defense, attorney Madelyn Grant said there was "quite a disparity of underlying facts" in the case, and said her client didn't plead guilty to sexually abusing the teen. She argued Rummel was remorseful and therefore a good candidate for probation — the presumptive sentence under Ohio law on a third-degree felony such as endangering children. Rummel already has lost his social work license, job and reputation, Grant said. He has no prior criminal record, is unlikely to commit the same crime again, and was described by a former co-worker as an "exemplary social worker ... unique in his skill set," Grant said. She agreed with prosecutors that Rummel committed the crimes while in a position of authority, but disagreed that there were enough facts to prove he raped the victim. Rummel also will have "the stigma of being a convicted felon the rest of his life," Grant said. Foster mother: We want justice The victim, who was in foster care and under the supervision of Children Services at the time of the crime, had the legal right to appear in court but declined to attend, Assistant Prosecutor Daniellela Leigh said. Leigh said the prosecution's case showed Rummel had sexually explicit conversations with the teen, and invited her to be part of an "open relationship" with him and his girlfriend. Rummel, she said, told the girl not to tell anyone what happened because "he takes care of his family and he can't get in trouble," she said. Even though he didn't plead guilty to sexual abuse, Rummel still admitted to "cruelly abusing a child" under the law, Leigh said. And while he may come from a "kind and loving family," not one of the letters they wrote the court on Rummel's behalf described him as remorseful, she said. Rummel "did the exact opposite of what Lorain County Children Services strives to do. He betrayed the trust the community placed in him and used his position to abuse a child," Leigh said, "a young vulnerable child, one that was removed from the custody of her mother due to years of serious neglect." The victim's former foster mother asked Miraldi for justice. The teen went from being neglected by her biological mother to a straight-A high school honor student with a job who planned to attend college. After Rummel abused her, she was mentally, socially, physically, financially and emotionally damaged, her former foster mother said. The victim felt betrayed, lied to, trapped and raped, the woman said. She suffered fatigue, nightmares, insomnia, made late-night calls to help line counselors, was in constant pain and felt defenseless. The victim left the foster home after a year but remains in contact with the family, her former foster mother said. The Chronicle does not typically name child abuse victims. Background Prosecutors said the abuse took place in March 2021 in an apartment kept by Children Services to help teach teenagers life skills. The abuse happened while Rummel was on the clock, and when the allegations were made on March 26, 2021, Lorain police immediately investigated. To avoid any potential conflicts of interest, Children Services also asked Medina County Job & Family Services to investigate, Children Services Executive Director Kristen Fox Berki said previously. Rummel was placed on paid administrative leave the same day the allegations against him were made, placed on unpaid leave on May 3, 2021, and fired on June 28, 2021. He was first hired by Children Services in July 2018, according to his personnel file. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @DaveOBrienCT.