Columbus, OH – A recent arrest in Columbus involving a former Catholic charity executive is serving as a high-profile test for a new Ohio anti-grooming law, according to the source material. Scott Hartman, 49, who previously served as a senior vice president and chief development officer for The Catholic Foundation, faces multiple charges, including a misdemeanor grooming offense that, according to the source, did not exist before April 2025. Hartman has pleaded not guilty to all allegations.
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force arrested Hartman on October 1 for “online sexual abuse of a minor,” as stated in a release from the office earlier this month. The sheriff’s office initiated an investigation in April of this year after a teenage victim reported to school counselors an online relationship with Hartman. This relationship allegedly involved text messages and video calls, including video sex acts and the exchange of nude images and videos. These activities reportedly continued for six months before their discovery, the sheriff’s office stated. The sheriff’s office also alleged that Hartman attempted to meet the teenager for sex, persuaded the victim to delete evidence, and tried to conceal that she was a minor. Furthermore, the sheriff’s office noted that one or more of Hartman’s alleged social media accounts were shut down and reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children due to the nature of their conversations.
Following his arrest, Hartman was indicted on October 13. The indictment includes charges of pandering sexually oriented matter involving a minor, other related felony offenses, and tampering with evidence, alongside the new misdemeanor grooming charge.
The Catholic Foundation confirmed that Hartman had been fired from his position. Loren Brown, the foundation’s president and CEO, stated that the organization is cooperating with law enforcement. Brown commented that Hartman's actions violated trust and directly opposed their mission and Catholic faith.
The misdemeanor grooming charge against Hartman stems from Ohio House Bill 322, a bill co-sponsored by former Ohio state Sen. Bill Seitz, a Republican from Cincinnati. This legislation was enacted in April 2025 to update sex offense statutes in the state. According to Seitz, the bill was partly spurred by Ohioans who advocated for stronger consequences for individuals who fail to report alleged sexual abuse and for those who groom victims before committing sexual acts. Seitz told the Capital Journal that the challenge lay in distinguishing between appropriate supportive behavior and a concerning “pattern going well beyond that,” emphasizing the appeal of proving intent in such a pattern.
The grooming statute under which Hartman is charged specifies that no person over 18 years old can “engage in a pattern of conduct” with anyone younger than 16 years old and four years younger than the adult, when “the pattern of conduct would cause a reasonable adult person to believe that the person is communicating with a minor” for sexual activity or preparing a minor for sexual activity. This charge is classified as a misdemeanor, a lower-level offense that typically does not carry a lengthy prison sentence unless accompanied by felony charges.
While Seitz did not comment specifically on Hartman’s case, he expressed his belief that the law will not only aid in charging offenders in current cases but also facilitate more civil actions and deter more serious crimes. Seitz acknowledged that he does not anticipate a “huge influx of cases” because proving grooming will be “somewhat difficult to prove.” He noted that supporters of the bill aimed to establish a legal framework to address such conduct early, before it escalated to more severe crimes.
Other significant provisions of H.B. 322 include an extended statute of limitations for charging individuals required to report potential sex abuse crimes who fail to do so. The statute of limitations was moved from two years to four, a change advocated by mothers who spoke with Seitz about the bill, particularly concerning punishment for priests accused of abuse. These mothers were concerned that by the time abuse by priests was discovered, the window for prosecuting others who might have known had often expired, Seitz explained.
A third key component of the new law updates a mid-2000s statute, granting individuals the right to pursue civil action in cases where criminal statutes of limitation have expired. Seitz stated that if a court finds sufficient evidence in a civil proceeding to prove an individual is a child sex offender, that individual would be placed on a sex offender list.
Seitz believes that while the law may not lead to an “overabundance of legal cases,” societal attitudes have evolved, making these laws effective in targeting abuses that he hopes are becoming “a thing of the past.” He contrasted current stringent requirements for training and safeguarding children within organizations with more relaxed attitudes prevalent in earlier decades.
Hartman currently remains incarcerated, with his bond set at $750,000, as the court case proceeds.
