Judge slams ex-Perry Hall High School teacher who sexually exploited 4 students: ‘You’re a predator’

A Baltimore County judge on Monday excoriated a former Perry Hall High School health and physical education teacher who sexually exploited four students as a “creep,” “manipulator” and “predator” before ordering him to serve 15 years in prison.

Circuit Judge Dennis Robinson Jr. said Sean Brooks “does not seem to fully appreciate the consequences of his actions.” Brooks pleaded guilty to sexual abuse of a minor, fourth-degree sex offense and second-degree assault.

Brooks, 41, of Bel Air, told a forensic psychologist during a mental health assessment that he provided a safe place for students, Robinson said. The former teacher claimed students had “little crushes” on him and took his remarks out of context, the judge said.

Robinson noted that Brooks told a student she should become a porn star and then proposed serving as her manager. He made comments about intimate body parts. He hugged and kissed students in a basement classroom and groped one girl’s breasts, Robinson said.

At one point, Brooks assigned students in his health class to write about slang sexual terminology, which Robinson described as a “whole other level of disgusting and creepiness.” The judge said he did not even know some of the words.

“You are not like a big brother. You are not a good, trusted adult. You were not the cool teacher,” Robinson told Brooks.

“I’ll tell you what you are: You’re a creep, you’re a manipulator, you’re an abuser, you’re a groomer, you’re a predator,” he added. “You should be forced to carry a red flag and wear a warning label.”

Meanwhile, Robinson commended the survivors for their bravery in coming forward. He said he hoped that they could find some level of closure and peace of mind.

“You did not cause this to happen. This was not your fault,” he said. “You did exactly what society encourages children to do: You trusted the adults who were put in place to teach you, support you and keep you safe.”

The sentencing guidelines called for a punishment that ranged from four to nine years in prison.

It’s the second time in the past week that Robinson has exceeded the sentencing guidelines for a teacher who took advantage of students. On Friday, Robinson sentenced Sydnie Haywood, 34, of Pikesville, who taught Spanish at Woodlawn Middle School, to serve three years in prison for sexually abusing a student.

When he’s released from prison, Brooks will have to spend five years on supervised probation, register as a sex offender for the rest of his life and comply with a number of other conditions.

Baltimore County Police started investigating Brooks in 2025 after two students reported concerns.

As part of a plea agreement, the Harford County State’s Attorney’s Office and U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maryland agreed to not pursue charges against Brooks for exchanging sexually explicit images through Snapchat with another girl.

Two of the students spoke about the profound damage that Brooks has inflicted on their lives as well as the trauma they continue to endure. They recounted how they have experienced nightmares, flashbacks and panic attacks.

“I feel like I lost parts of my life that I can never get back,” one student said. “I lost my sense of safety. I lost trust. I lost the ability to feel comfortable in my own body. I lost the version of myself who could simply exist without constantly being on guard.”

Another student said she trusted Brooks and felt he was looking out for her. The fact that the criminal case was ending, she said, “does not mean that everything inside of me ends, too.”

“Mr. Brooks may eventually serve his sentence and move on with his life,” she said. “I don’t get to do that in the same way.”

Three parents also spoke at sentencing.

The Banner does not identify survivors of sex crimes without their permission.

Assistant State’s Attorney Michael DeStefano requested a sentence of nine years in prison, arguing that Brooks used school assignments to identify his victims and then groomed them.

“This man is a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” DeStefano said. “He treated Perry Hall like a hunting ground for girls.”

Joe Murtha and Sandy Steeves, Brooks’ attorneys, requested the minimum sentence under the plea agreement: four years in prison.

Brooks has accepted responsibility and gained a better understanding of what he did while incarcerated in the Baltimore County Detention Center, Murtha said. He said he’s met with his client on almost 30 previous occasions.

Later, Brooks apologized to the students and their families, his own loved ones and Baltimore County Public Schools.

“I was the teacher, and you were my students,” he said. “I failed you.”

Brooks said he “went beyond the scope of my professional responsibility by digging into your personal lives and discussing with you my own.” He described his behavior as disrespectful, ignorant, hurtful, deceitful, wrong and ungodly.

He said he assumed his behavior was “mildly inappropriate, at worst.” He said he was “completely unaware of any serious wrongdoing until I was arrested and read the police report.”

“I am deeply ashamed by my actions, and I take full responsibility,” Brooks said.

Since his incarceration, Brooks said, he’s become a born-again Christian.

He said he’s interested in receiving cognitive behavior therapy and sex offender treatment and studying for his commercial driver’s license.