Former Madison-Grant valedictorian sentenced to prison

Ken de la Bastide, The Herald Bulletin, Anderson, Ind.
·2 min read
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Apr. 22—ANDERSON — A former class valedictorian and basketball standout at Madison-Grant High School has been sentenced to prison for six years.

Grant Brown, 21, Fairmount, was arrested in May 2023 following a 10-month investigation by Indiana State Police.

Brown in December entered into a plea agreement with the Madison County Prosecutor's office to enter pleas of guilty to two counts of child molesting, two counts of child exploitation and eight counts of possession of child pornography.

As part of the plea agreement, the state would not charge Brown with seven additional counts of child exploitation for incidents in other Indiana counties.

Madison Circuit Court Division 6 Judge Mark Dudley on Friday sentenced Brown to nine years with six years to be served and three years suspended to formal probation. Dudley also found Brown to be a sexually violent predator and ordered him the register as a sex offender for life.

The state was represented by Madison County deputy prosecutor Dan Kopp.

"The investigation started in July 2022, when (ISP) Detective Dave Preston was requested by the Summitville Police Department to take over a case involving an allegation of child molestation," a press release states.

The probable cause affidavit states that Brown met a 13-year-old girl in 2020 at a football game and started corresponding on social media.

Eventually, according to the court document, two years later they started to have a sexual relationship.

An investigation of Brown's cellphone showed he had contact with seven other juvenile females asking them to send him sexually explicit photographs.

"During the course of the investigation, it was discovered that additional criminal actions had occurred with multiple juvenile females," the affidavit states.

Brown was the career assists leader and surpassed 1,000 points scored at Madison-Grant, from which he graduated as co-valedictorian in 2021. He played on the basketball team at Anderson University.

Follow Ken de la Bastide on Twitter @KendelaBastide, or call 765-640-4863.