Local
Md. police sting operation targeted Grindr
Local man convicted of soliciting sex from 15-year-old
Daniel Read
A Montgomery County Circuit Court judge on June 29 found a 31-year-old man guilty of soliciting sex from a 15-year-old fictional boy created by an undercover police detective who posted messages on the gay app Grindr under the name “Kinky Twinkie.”
The guilty verdict handed down for Germantown resident Daniel Read followed a one-day non-jury trial in which information surfaced that the undercover officer initially created a Grindr profile for Kinky Twinkie as a 17-year-old male high school student.
The legal age of consent in Maryland is 16.
At the time of his arrest in December, Read served as a Montgomery County District Court commissioner, a position that involves performing some of the duties of a judge, including setting bail for prisoners. He was dismissed from his job shortly after his arrest.
A police charging document filed in court says that under the profile of “Dan,” Read began to communicate with the detective posing as the student through text messages and private messages on Grindr.
“During these messages your affiant advised Dan that he (Kinky Twinky) was actually 15 years old,” the charging document says. After several additional exchanges of messages, Dan allegedly asked the student to send him nude photos of himself.
“By utilizing open source libraries, your affiant was able to obtain images to send to Dan as he requested,” says the charging document, which was prepared by the arresting officer, who is identified on the document as Det. Nick Jerman.
The document says Read eventually told the fictional student through a text message that he wanted to have sexual intercourse with him and agreed to meet him at a McDonald’s restaurant in Germantown.
According to the charging document, police officers intercepted Read in his car and arrested him on a charge of sexual solicitation of a minor as he approached the McDonald’s. It says Read had given the undercover officer posing as the student his cell phone number during a prior communication.
Police used the number to trace Read’s identity and home address. At some point before the arrest, police visited the street where Read lived and saw his car, which enabled them to recognize the car when Read drove to the McDonald’s.
“Yesterday’s verdict is clear,” said Ramon Korionoff, a spokesperson for the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office, which prosecuted the case. “Do not seek out sex with a minor. Do not use social media to lure underage boys for a sexual encounter,” Korionoff said.
“The underage person you may be ‘chatting with’ might just be an undercover police officer,” he said. “Daniel Read used poor judgment and committed a criminal offense. He will be held accountable for his crime.”
Under Maryland law Read faces a sentence of up to 10 years in prison and possible placement on a sex offender registry. He is scheduled to be sentenced by Circuit Court Judge Sharon Burrell on Aug. 15.
Read’s attorney, David Moyse, said Read’s arrest took place 30 days after he and the undercover officer began communicating with each other on Grindr and after Read developed what the attorney said was an emotional bond with what he thought was a confused young man who he wanted to help.
“And the real truth is he was targeted, and for 30 days was speaking with this young man thinking that they had a real relationship,” Moyse said. “And Mr. Read identified with the idea of a sexually confused or in-the-closet 15-year-old who was being raised Catholic just like Mr. Read and who described himself as not understood by friends and family or his religion.”
According to Moyse, although Burrell said in her verdict that Read’s actions met the criteria of sexual solicitation of a minor she also found that he was “emotionally induced” to create a relationship with the fictitious student.
“They preyed on a lot of issues that Mr. Read dealt with in his own adolescence to create that bond,” said Moyse. “And in the very end they used jealousy to get him to go over the edge.”
Moyse said transcripts of hundreds of text messages between Read and the detective posing as the student, which were introduced as evidence at the trial, show that the detective repeatedly raised the issue of sex and made it clear that he wanted to have sex with Read.
“Mr. Read kept saying, look, wait until you’re 16 and it’s legal and then we’ll meet,” Moyse quoted Read as saying. “After 30 days the officer said you know what? You’re Mr. Right but I need Mr. Right Now,” Moyse recounted.
“And he went back on Grindr presumably to find another guy,” said Moyse. “And Daniel was so jealous he said fine, let’s fuck.”
It was at that point, Moyse said, that police and prosecutors determined Read crossed the line and violated the statute prohibiting sexual solicitation of a minor.
“To be very fair, they had prior conversations from Mr. Read with other people where he expressed interest in 15-year old boys and 14-year-old boys,” Moyse said. “These were all kind of internet talk. It wasn’t with actual 15-year-olds. But the judge found that he still had the desire, the predisposition to do this,” said Moyse.
“That’s why it’s not entrapment,” he said, as defined and interpreted under the law.
Moyse said he has made a request with the judge to have the sentencing postponed to allow Read to be further evaluated by a mental health professional who will prepare a pre-sentencing report for the judge.
District of Columbia
Mary’s House founder, CEO retires
Dr. Imani Woody played leading role in opening DC’s first home for LGBTQ seniors
The board of directors for Mary’s House for Older Adults, DC’s first official home dedicated to providing affordable housing for LGBTQ seniors, announced on July 7 that its founding president and CEO, Dr. Imani Woody, has retired.
Woody, who holds a PhD in Human Services, is credited with playing a leading role over many years in arranging both city and private funding needed to construct and operate the Mary’s House three-story building located at 401 Anacostia Road, S.E., in the city’s Fort Dupont neighborhood.
The house, which opened in March 2025, with a grand opening ceremony held in May 2025, includes 15 single-occupancy residential units and more than 5,000 square feet of shared communal living space.
“It is with profound gratitude and hearts full of celebration that the board of directors of Mary’s House for Older Adults, DC (MHFOA) announces the retirement of our visionary founder, Dr. Imani Woody, from her role as president and CEO,” the Mary’s House board says in a statement.
“Dr. Woody’s journey with Mary’s House began with her vision and a kitchen table gathering of women with a bold, urgent, and loving vision: to create safe, affirming, affordable housing for LGBTQ/SGL older adults in Washington, DC,” the statement says.
It adds, “What started as a dream has grown into DC’s first affordable LGBTQ+/SGL affirming communal living space for adults 60 and over, a 15-room community residence at 401 Anacostia Road in Southeast Washington.”
The statement says Woody will continue to serve on Mary’s House board.
“The board will be sharing information about the leadership transition process in the coming weeks,” the statement continues. “We are committed to honoring Dr. Woody’s legacy by ensuring Mary’s House continues to thrive and grow in faithful service to LGBTQ/SGL elders experiencing housing insecurity and isolation.”
Maryland
Va., Md., advocates brace for next fight after Supreme Court sports ruling
Neither state has statewide ban on trans student athletes
On June 30, the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for states to enforce laws barring transgender students from participating on school sports teams consistent with their gender identity, a decision LGBTQ advocates say could encourage additional restrictions across the country.
While neither Maryland nor Virginia currently has a statewide ban on trans student athletes, advocates say the decision could reshape future legislative battles and school policies throughout the region.
Directly following the case, attorneys for trans student athletes spoke out about the case and how detrimental it could be to students.
“This ruling is deeply harmful for transgender women and girls who only asked for the ability to participate in sports with their peers,” said Sasha Buchert, senior attorney and director of the Nonbinary and Transgender Rights Project for Lambda Legal, in a press release from the American Civil Liberties Union.
The next step is figuring out how states will move forward, specifically in Maryland and Virginia.
As of right now, neither state has bans on trans athletes in schools. The new Supreme Court decision also does not require states to enact bans, only that bans are allowed if states or school districts choose to enforce them.
According to the ACLU, 27 states have banned trans youth from participating in school sports since 2020. Most of these states also require sex testing, which the organization says is invasive for all female athletes.
Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman said that while she has heard a lot of frustration following the decision, people are ready to take action.
“Families, parents and youth have lived through disappointing changes to the Virginia Department of Education’s model policies for the treatment of transgender students, and the Virginia High School League’s decades-old policy that allowed transgender students an opportunity to play sports with their friends,” Rahaman said in a statement to the Washington Blade.
She believes they are not ready to give up this fight quite yet.
As of now, trans and nonbinary students are protected under Virginia law, and Rahaman wants that to continue.
“This ruling will likely embolden right-wing members of the General Assembly to pursue trans athlete bans, and we will continue to defeat every bill like we have the past five legislative sessions. Now is our time to be proactive,” Rahaman said.
She also calls upon Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger to defend trans youth in Virginia from what she describes as bullies and to continue to stand up to federal attacks on the trans community in general.
For trans students, Rahaman wants to ensure that they continue to know that they belong and have a place in school sports.
“To the transgender young people watching this decision unfold: you belong on your team, in your school, in your community, and here in Virginia. This ruling does not change that. A single Supreme Court decision cannot define your worth or your future,” Rahaman said.
For people who may be outside the community but want to help, she encourages them to speak with trans and nonbinary people in their community, befriend the families of youth to show their support, and continue to speak up on these issues when needed.
According to ACLU of Virginia, high schooler Eliza Munshi was told she could not compete on the girls’ track team because she was trans. To prove a point, she decided to compete with the boys.
She had previously competed on the girls’s track team before her Virginia school decided to enforce the ban demanded by President Donald Trump. With pink hair and pink makeup, she decided to continue her love for the sport alongside boys. According to Munshi, her entire community rallied for her.
“I did it to prove a point. I knew I could do it. I knew it wouldn’t phase me. My gender itself and that label has been the least important part of my transition: I want to look how I want to look. I want to dress how I want to dress. If you don’t like that, then that’s not my business,” Munshi said.
DOE has launched Title IX probe against Md. school districts
In the weeks leading up to the ruling, multiple Maryland school districts were included in a Title IX probe stating that not enforcing sex-based protections guaranteed by federal law. Currently, there have been no updates on the lawsuit or the district’s decisions.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, the federal probe is based on parent complaints that the school districts were violating a specific Trump-Vance administration addition to Title IX, stating it aligned the sex-based protections “with biological reality, not ideological fantasy.”
According to FreeState Justice, an LGBTQ advocacy group in Maryland, while this is a disappointing ruling to see, they will continue to fight for trans student-athletes in Maryland and want trans youth to know that they belong.
“Every young person deserves the opportunity to participate in school and community life without being singled out because of who they are. These decisions send a harmful message to transgender youth that they are somehow less deserving of that opportunity,” said Phillip Westry, the group’s executive director.
Westry wants to make sure the community knows that their commitment to the organization has not changed and will continue to provide the same legal services they have prior and to advance policy solutions, to ensure “every LGBTQ+ Marylander can live with dignity, safety, and equal opportunity.”
Another issue brought up by trans advocates is the issue of testing women to determine whether they are biologically female or not.
According to Human Rights Watch, as of 2023, World Athletics required cis women with increased testosterone levels to undergo medical procedures to have it reduced to avoid advantages. Other forms of “sex verification” may include genetic testing, screenings of an athlete’s anatomy or chromosomes.
However, this can become detrimental because not all women have ovaries, a uterus, or XX chromosomes, meaning cisgender women could potentially be included in these bans, depending on how the specific state plans to enforce them.
Maryland
Eastern Shore school board wants an 18-and-over rule for young adult books
Classics like ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ and ‘Little Women’ might be off limits to most students
By LIZ BOWIE | Somerset County’s school board is considering barring students under the age of 18 from reading any young-adult literature in school libraries, essentially restricting all but 12th graders from checking out books written for teens and tweens.
The proposed policy also calls for the superintendent to discipline librarians if “adult” reading material appears in the children’s section.
The policy defines young adult as students over 18. “Young adults are not minors and books suitable for young adults shall be placed on a separate Young Adults library section to reflect age-appropriate literature,” a draft of the policy says.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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