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On December 22nd, 2017, Ben Trane of Keokuk, IA was found guilty of child endangerment, sexual exploitation of a child by a counselor, and assault with intent to commit sexual abuse. Since that time, a small but vocal part of the community have been trying to change the public perception of the trial by claiming that Ben Trane was convicted on only the testimony of one single victim. This is not true at all. Both DHS and the FBI did a joint investigation into the school and the use of their OSS/isolation rooms. We don’t want to give you our opinion but let you read that actual court transcripts. In them, you will find out the following information:

During his pretrial conference transcripts, Ben’s lawyer stated that Ben Trane asked for a speedy trial and for the venue to remain in Keokuk despite her advice.
There were two 12 year old boys that were victims in this trial. They were locked in an isolated 8×8 cell for 100+ days each. According to the testimony of the mothers, both children had learning disabilities and one was struggling with mental illness. They both lost 30+ pounds during their time in isolation. One of the children were expelled from the school and had to immediately be hospitalized for several days for malnutrition.
The OSS/isolation logs show that boys would be in there for days at a time. Sometimes they would have their clothes taken away, cry in a corner, defecate in a corner, beg for a stuffed animal, etc.
In Midwest Academy, boys were divided into groups called “families.” These families lived in the same room together and often had to do activities together. Ben Trane and his clinical staff formed a family called the Pride family where the boys with the most problems were put. One of the boys that were put in this family was a sexual offender and was at Midwest Academy as part of a deal with the courts. Ben Trane testified that he did not feel he had to let the other boys’ parents know that their children were housed with a sexual offender. Due to this, one of the 12 year old boys was sexually abused according to the mother of the victim. Ben Trane and Gary LaChapelle both tried to frame this to the parents as “sexual experimentation” even though the boy never showed those interests before and he was under the age of legal consent in Iowa. That boy went home and still suffers from PTSD today according to his mother.
According to the testimony of DHS Agent Joe Lestina, Ben Trane’s seminal fluid was found in front of the surveillance monitors in his office.
Multiple former students testify that sexual surveys were handed out to the girls which asked invasive and inappropriate questions like what they enjoyed during sex, how often they masturbated, etc. A stack of these surveys were found when authorities searched the school. According to the testimony of the clinical staff, none of his licensed therapists knew about these surveys
Ben Trane admitted on the stand that he conducted “body image therapy” where he would have girls undress in a private room in front of a mirror and after they would come out, he would ask them to tell him about their body shape. Per the testimony of his clinical staff, none of his licensed therapists knew about this or ever participated. Multiple students testified that they never asked to do this body image class and Ben picked them to do it.
Ben Trane testified that he would take some of the girls shopping at Victoria’s Secret and pay for them out of his own pocket. During the course of the investigation, Ben Trane told DHS workers that he would not be around female students while the investigation was ongoing. An off duty DHS worker later spotted him in Victoria’s Secret shopping with students approximately 2 weeks later.
The sexual abuse victim was a student that Ben groomed while she was there. She was supposed to have a female family rep and according to the clinical director, he insisted that she not be paired up with a male family rep. Ben Trane decided he wanted to be her family rep and put himself in this position. According to many staff that testified, he was the owner and had final say on everything.
Witnesses testified to Ben Trane’s growing special attention towards the sexual abuse victim. One witness described how he would shower the girl with gifts, pull her out of class often, and choose her for extra service projects.
Ben Trane would use the students locked up in his school for his own profit. They cleaned his cars, worked in his gas station, cleaned his condos, cleaned his boat and would use them for community service projects that made him look better in the community. Since these children needed points to level up in Midwest Academy’s system and go home, they had to do extra things like this to excel in the school.

And you’ll find much more information including the transcripts. Every link below for transcripts will take you to a page with the highlights and a link to the full transcripts for you. We know that there is a strong push to donate money from this small group and help Ben Trane out in appealing his conviction. We can’t tell you that you can’t donate to that cause if you’re so inclined but we felt it was important to the community to know that it was more than a “he said/she said” case. There were multiple documents showing the treatment of these children, witnesses that collaborated that Ben paid special attention to the sexual abuse victim, witnesses to the endangerment of these children in isolation, and expert witnesses that testified to what extended isolation can do to children.

Pretrial Transcripts

Pretrial Conference 11/27/2017 – Ben demands a speedy trial and for the trial to be in Keokuk against his lawyer’s advice

Trial Transcripts

Introduction – To what we are posting and why. There’s been a lot of disinformation so we want to make sure everyone can see what happened at the trial.
Prosecutor Opening Statements – Prosecutor goes over the charges and how they will prove the defendant groomed the girls, sexually abused one and endangered children.
A Mother’s Testimony – The mother of one of the 12 year old boys testifies about her son’s condition and how the school and DHS called her to inform her of her son being exposed sexually to other boys. Ben Trane and Gary LaChappelle referred to it as “experimentation” and told her they couldn’t do more to protect her son.
Stephen Jansing’s Testimony – Former staff member testifies to the horrible conditions of the school and how some staff would try to “mentally break” some of the children. Speaks about isolation for extended periods of time, special diets, how some children should not be there, etc. Testified that he and other staff were paid by Midwest Academy while working there, housed at Ben Trane’s condos and given cars to use by Ben Trane. If they were to quit or get fired, they would lose their car, housing and paycheck so the risk to getting fired was much higher than an average job.
Victim Number 2’s Testimony – One of the 12 year old victims testify. He was in OSS (isolation) for over 100+ days, lost 30+ pounds, and had to be hospitalized for several days after he was pulled out of Midwest Academy.
Another Mother’s Testimony – Mother of the second 12 year old boy to testifies to how Ben Trane told her that her son was manipulating her if he speaks negatively about the school, how she could barely recognize him when she saw him and how she had to place him in the hospital right after she pulled him out of the school
Witness 1’s Testimony – Former student testifying to the conditions of the school, isolation, how Ben Trane was seen as god in the school, how Ben asked the girls to fill out sexual surveys, how Ben told them they had to do “body image class,” how Ben would take some girls to Victoria’s Secret, and how she noticed Ben’s increased attentions towards the girl he was accused of sexually abusing
Witness 2’s Testimony – Former student who testified that she had PTSD and was often punished for panic attacks and flashbacks. She was put into isolation and punished whenever that would happen. She knew the sexual abuse victim and saw the special attention Ben Trane would give her including buying her extra things, taking her out more, etc. This witness eventually left at the age of 18 and chose to be homeless instead of staying in the school for a moment longer. She testified to also seeing Ben Trane hand out sexual surveys, do “body image class,” and take girls out to Victoria’s Secret
Witness 3’s Testimony – Former student who testified about the conditions in isolation, how she would have to help restrain her peers, how Ben Trane could override any rule in the school since he was the other, how she had to take the sexual survey, how Ben Trane would conduct the “body image class,” and how Ben Trane would talk about sexually suggestive topics at times. After the isolation of living at Midwest Academy, she found it hard to be social after leaving the school.
Tyler McGhghy Shenanigans – Former Midwest Academy staff member who was found to be taking pictures in the courtroom during the trial
Dr Anna Salter’s Testimony – Forensic psychologist who testifies about delayed disclosure with sexual abuse victims
Michael Ray Davis’ Testimony – The former Midwest Academy clinical director who testified that it was a hostile environment towards therapy there from the staff. He was not given power to change much and was told by Shasta Heidbreder and others that he would be fired if he tried too much. Felt Ben Trane was a strict behaviorist and didn’t believe much in mental illness. He testified that Midwest Academy didn’t require much for someone to get hired and how Ben Trane refused to get his staff mandatory child abuse training since he didn’t want them to be reporting anything. Michael Davis didn’t agree with some things in the school such as making the children sit in isolation for 24 hours in the same sitting positions and agreed that OSS wasn’t always the best for children mentally. He did see one of the 12 year old boys mentally declining in isolation and felt he wasn’t a good fit for the school from the first week the child was there. It took 6 months for Ben Trane to finally remove the child from the school. Michael Davis wasn’t even given the power to evaluate and decline students from entering the school – Ben Trane and Colton Trane took away his ability to do so and would accept almost anyone. Michael also testified that he told his staff that the sexual abuse victim should only be on a female family rep’s caseload. Ben decided to become her family rep anyways. He also testified that he had no idea about the sexual surveys or body image classes that Ben was conducting and only found out about the Victoria Secret’s trips Ben would do with girls after the school closed. Ben made all the final decisions on policy and rules in the school.
Cheyenne Jerred’s Testimony – Former night staff at Midwest Academy and the staff member who called in the abuse allegation first. She was later fired after reporting the allegation to DHS. She was concerned about the use of OSS (isolation rooms). Some children would be in there for weeks at a time. Sometimes the mattress would be taken away at night to discipline them. She also testifies that Ben Trane could go anywhere he wanted without being questioned since he was the owner. Family reps were allowed in the female living quarters and it would not be logged.
Elizabeth Webster’s Testimony – DHS worker who was at the Academy the day the sexual abuse victim was taken out. During this time, Ben Trane told her he would not work with the girls at all while the investigation was ongoing.
Ryan Herman’s Testimony – DCI agent who helped with executing the search warrant. He describes where Ben Trane kept the student records and how they had the students in the gymnasium during the search to keep them out of areas they would search.
Thomas Pearson’s Testimony – FBI Agent. They were already investigating Midwest Academy long before the sexual abuse case for their use of isolation rooms. He was there on the day the search warrant was executed and interviewed Ben Trane for 6 hours during that day. During that interview, Ben told him that children didn’t advance in the program to “spite” their parents, claimed anyone could report abuse in the school as long as they went through the clinical director (who had no real power per his own testimony), Ben avoided mentioning that he took girls to Victoria’s Secret, Ben Trane claimed he couldn’t remember the sexual abuse victim ever being at his house, Ben Trane told agent Pearson that there was “body image class” but the therapists were the ones that conducted it, Ben also claimed that students who were in OSS for longer than 7 days would get expelled from the school but his OSS logs proved this was incorrect, when asked about the sexual abuse towards the boys – Ben Trane stated it wasn’t his problem to supervise the boys, Ben Trane tried to explain the surveillance cameras being shut down due to him being tired of catching his staff stealing things and he “didn’t want to deal with it,” etc
Joe Lestina’s Testimony – Lead DHS Agent on the case. He interviewed the sexual abuse victim and was there on the day the search warrant was executed. According to him, the sexual abuse victim was consistent with her story. It took her awhile to open up but she eventually did. When the search warrant was executed, they found a boy securing another boy in the OSS/isolation rooms and decided to interview every student at that point. They found a camera in Ben Trane’s position that matched the description the victim gave them but no SD cards with images on it that related to the case – this is most likely because Ben Trane had 2 months between the time the student was pulled from the school and the search warrant was executed. The sexual abuse victim gave the agents a description of Ben Trane’s home and basement that was consistent with what they found. They found no cameras in the areas of the school where the sexual abuse was supposed to have occurred. They found logs on Ben’s phone showing that he let the victim make calls to her sister on his personal cell phone and they found 9 photos of the victim on Ben’s phone – most of them being with her trying to cover her face. They also found pictures of Victoria’s Secret on the phone. They found Ben Trane’s seminal fluid in his office at the school – It was on the carpet directly in front of the surveillance monitors.
Jennifer Richardson’s Testimony – DHS Agent who was called out to Midwest Academy several times during the course of 2015. The first time, she was called for the amount of time the boys were spending in OSS/isolation rooms. She was specifically looking into 7 boys. Some were no longer in the school but two 12 year old boys were still there. Both boys complained about being hungry while being interviewed by her and one asked for food over and over again. There were bruises all over one of the children. One of the 12 year old boys told her that he had been in OSS/isolation for 180 days but she could only confirm a little over 100 days because the OSS logs were incomplete. Despite this, he was somewhat outgoing. Months later, she was called out for an allegation of sexual abuse against this young boy and he was more withdrawn. She contacted the parents in both incidents. Ben’s attitude this whole time was that disgruntle ex-employees were trying to make him look bad and this would hurt his image. Ben claimed there were no diet problems and that children were fed 7,000 calories a day – despite the evidence that these boys had lost a huge chunk of their BMI. Ben insisted to Richardson both boys were helped by their time in OSS/isolation rooms. Even through the records were incomplete, she confirmed that one of the two boys spend 133 days out of his 210 days at the Academy in OSS/isolation and the other boy spent 163 days out of his 323 days at very least. After Ben Trane told her coworker Elizabeth Webster that he would not be around the girls at all, Richardson caught him shopping with students at Victoria’s Secret less than a month later.
Richard Rahn’s Testimony – Officer who was there when the search warrant was executed. He found the sexual surveys in Ben’s office during the search.
Dr Stuart Grassian’s Testimony – Forensic psychiatrist and expert in solitary confinement. He testifies to the dangerous effects of solitary confinement – especially towards children. Children with mental problems or at risk youth are the most susceptible to harm from the conditions described in OSS. He also testifies that what Ben Trane considers “cognitive behavior therapy” is not CBT but a branch of aversion therapy which is not practiced anymore for ethical reasons.
Move for Acquittal – Common motion by the defense and it’s quickly dismissed
Defense’s Opening Statement – The defense lawyer gives her opening statement
Layani Trane’s Testimony – Wife of Ben Trane who worked as a family rep at the school. She claimed that the program was customized for the students as needed. She also testified that it wasn’t really required for students to sit in structure or be in OSS for at least 24 hours – something her husband’s testimony later goes to contradict. She claimed she was in OSS at least 7 days a week to spend time with children there. Claimed that it was the children’s choice to be in the isolation rooms. She testified that most family reps worked with children of their same gender. She claimed that all decisions were group decisions such as the sexual abuse victim being moved to Ben Trane’s caseload – the rest of the clinical staff claim that they weren’t part of that decision in their own testimony. She claimed that her husband wasn’t the director of the school for some time and wasn’t making all the final decisions. Claimed they did “cognitive behavioral theory” for the “character-building” portion of the school. Claimed she was at home when the sexual abuse victim was at their house – something that the sexual abuse victim disputes and previously Ben had told FBI agent Thomas Pearson that he couldn’t remember the victim in his house. Layani has to admit that Ben Trane used students for his own profit: They would clean his boat, his cars, his condos, do community service projects to make him look better in the community, and work at the gas station he owned. The students did this for extra “points.” Layani claimed she knew about the Victoria’s Secrets trips, the sexual surveys, and the body image classes. Points were needed in order to level up and leave the school. Layani claimed that family reps were not counselors or therapists. When the search warrant was executed, Layani told agents that Ben Trane was like Albert Einstein and knew more about cognitive behavioral things than most therapists. Note: Ben Trane did not have a college degree at this time and what he had gone to school for was computer science, not any sort of behavioral science. Layani testified that she knew about the sexual abuse allegation against her husband since before Thanksgiving that year – important to know since the first call to DHS was not until December 1st.
Devon Dade’s Stepdaughter’s Testimony – Witness for the defense. Former student and the stepdaughter of Devon Dade – the former director of the school. She testifies that the school wasn’t rough or harsh at all. She never went to OSS in her time there. She testified that she knew the sexual abuse victim in passing. She testified that the victim was always a little more withdrawn but around the end of November, she noticed she seemed angry. She also testified that her family rep was her “dad” (Devon) and that family reps were the same thing as counselors/therapists. Admitted that she and her family were close friends of the Trane family.
Gary LaChapelle’s Testimony – Former counselor at Midwest Academy. He was unlicensed in the state of Iowa but still gave therapy to students. He focused on chemical dependency but the rule was that students couldn’t get that kind of counseling until they were at level 3 – which is a process that could take 3-12 months to reach. Agreed that female family reps were normally paired with girls and male with boys. Claimed Ben didn’t make clinical decisions. Admits that small infractions could lead a child to being placed in OSS/isolation rooms. Per Gary, he was never concerned with the children’s safety or psychological damage in OSS and that being in there was a consequence of their actions. He admits that it was punitive. He testified that he remembered the two 12 year old victims as having a hard time in OS. He claimed one of the 12 year old boys was the class clown, immature, and really young and that would land him in OSS often. He testified that some children would tie things around their necks and try to hurt themselves in OSS but felt that it was just a game. Tried to rationalize the children losing so much weight in OSS by stating that they were “husky” when they initially arrived at the school. He does admit that the rule was that children would have to be in OSS and sit in structure for 24 hours in order to get out. Gary claimed that children would be out of control, hitting, and screaming non-stop for days. He testified that Midwest Academy wasn’t supposed to be Club Med or easy for these children and that OSS was punishment just like society would punish them. Gary also testified that he knew nothing about the sexual surveys or body image class.
Jane Riter’s Testimony – Former licensed counselor at Midwest Academy. She had a few “foggy memory” moments during her testimony and cross-examination. She testified that Ben Trane would often be at clinical meetings and participate and that he was the head of the facility. She stated that Midwest Academy was a private facility and the rules and regulations of the school were made by Ben Trane. She testified that she knew nothing about the sexual surveys or body image therapy. She did have mandatory child abuse training. She claimed that children always had a choice to be in OSS but she did sometimes take issue for how long children would be in there. She did know that there was a 24 hour rule to sit in structure to get out. She was a part of the clinical team but testified that she was not part of any decision to make Ben Trane the family rep of the sexual abuse victim. She reported the sexual abuse claim to DHS about 50 minutes after Cheyenne Jerred. She claimed she did it before the meeting she and her management had with Cheyenne. She claimed she didn’t know there was an abuse allegation until December 1st but this contradicts the facility paperwork that shows she gave counseling to the victim on 11/24 – the day after the victim was placed on suicide watch and told people she was uncomfortable around Ben Trane. Layani Trane’s own testimony also stated that she knew about the allegation since before Thanksgiving. We also have an email from the victim’s parents to Ben and Jane where they mention the allegation and a call they made to them – dated in November.
Ben Trane’s Testimony Part 1 – Sole owner of Midwest Academy and defendant. This is where his lawyer had him testify. He spoke about his connection to the community of Keokuk including people of influence who work for the city. Claimed they didn’t take adjudicated children. Claimed he was a micromanager and control freak. Claimed that OSS was only there to Deesclate the children and since children would push limits, they put in place the 24 hour rule and required them to sit structure. Claimed that even though the diet was different in OSS, they were getting a health amount of calories. He claimed that he would let the clinical team decide if a student should be allowed to enroll – directly contradicting his clinical director’s testimony. Testified that younger students didn’t adapt well to the program and took a lot longer but he still took them anyways. Claimed that one of the 12 year old boys in OSS – the one who was sexually abused by the other children – could have worked the program if he chose to. Claimed both victims chose to be in OSS/isolation for 100+ days. Claimed to spend an hour or two a day in OSS to help the children. Testified that he didn’t feel the children’s weight loss was that serious and they were getting more healthy being there. He claimed that the body image therapy was blown out of proportion and he was only doing it because one girl had been bullied and after he did it with one girls, other girls wanted it. As other former students testified, it was not something they volunteered for. He also admitted to taking girls to Victoria’s Secret but didn’t think much of it and claimed it was because they chose to go. He paid for most of these trips. Testified that the sexual abuse surveys were for metrics so he could adjust the seminars – claimed his secretary typed in the data but admitted that he read them too. Claimed that he didn’t know how they ended up in his office. Claimed it wasn’t his choice to take the sexual abuse victim on his caseload and it was decided by the clinical team – all of whom testified that they didn’t make that decision. Claimed that no one wanted to work with the victim – which seems strange because she was moving up the levels of the school very fast. Testified that the student went to his house and Layani was there – something he claimed he couldn’t recall when questioned by the FBI a year earlier. Claimed that the only reason the sexual abuse victim made the allegation against him because she wasn’t able to get an offsite visit with her sister – The abuse victim is now over the age of 18 and has visited Keokuk to testify against him and watch him to be sentenced at her own cost. It seems a little extreme to believe that at this point.
Ben Trane’s Testimony Part 2 – Cross-examination done by the prosecutor. She has Ben read the OSS logs showing that one of the 12 year old boys was fed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches only, had his clothes taken away, wept in the corner, urinated himself, asked for stuffed animal, etc. He was in OSS for a couple days that first stint. After he got out, he was back in less than 24 hours. It’s heartbreaking to read. Ben still insisted that the boy chose to be there. Ben claimed he didn’t know everything that went on at Midwest Academy and blamed the clinical and admin teams for making the rules – even though almost all the staff testified that he had final say on the rules and regulations of the school. The prosecutor has Ben read the student handbook where it states that there was a 24 hour minimum of sitting in structure in OSS to get out. He claimed many times that these children were the worst of the worst and that they would be school shooters with him so the prosecutor has him read the Midwest Academy welcome letter to parents that states that they have a zero tolerance policy for violence, would weed children like this out during the admissions process, and any violent actions would result in them being expelled from the school. Ben attempts to take credit for all the successes that the 12 year old boys had after they left the school and got real treatment and takes none of the responsibility for the bad. The prosecutor talks to him about the “Pride” group of boys where he groups boys together with a sexual offender. He admitted he didn’t tell the parents of the other boys and felt that if they knew the “details” of the case, they wouldn’t judge so harshly. Claimed he didn’t make any money on the school but then is grilled on why he took some girls to Victoria’s Secret and paid for it while he took the rest of the girls to Walmart or something cheaper for their bras and panties. Admitted that he read the sexual abuse surveys. Claimed that he discussed the sexual surveys with his clinical and admin team – all of them testified they knew nothing about these sexual surveys. Got dodgy about his trip to Victoria’s Secret after he told DHS he would not be around the girls – claims it might have been girls from another school or group. Claimed that Cheyenne Jerred wasn’t fired for “counseling” girls but for not reporting the allegation sooner – she was the first one to report it and no other staff who knew reported it before her.
2nd Motion to Dismiss – Ben Trane’s lawyer asks for the charges to be dismissed again and it’s declined.
Closing Evidence and Jury Instructions – Jury instructions and closing evidence are reviewed.
Prosecutor Closing Arguments
Defense Closing Arguments
Prosecutor Rebuttal To Defense
The Verdict

Sentencing

Part 1 – Ben’s new lawyer tries to paid a picture that Ben wasn’t defended correctly and there were procedural problems
Part 2 – Lisa Schaefer – Ben’s new lawyer subpoenaed his former lawyer without telling her why she was coming to the sentencing and tries to get her to admit to various ways he claims she bungled the case. She correctly points out that Ben Trane didn’t give her any notice, wouldn’t waive his right to a speedy trial and insisted against her advice to have the venue of the trial be in Keokuk.
Part 3 – More Parrish arguments – Ben’s new lawyer tries to paid a picture that Ben wasn’t defended correctly and there were procedural problems
Part 4 – Ben Testifies – Ben testifies that he didn’t get advised of the consequences of not waiving his rights to a speedy trial and that he was the victim here. See pre-trial conference transcript link above where the lawyer is very clear in that meeting.
Part 5 – Motion for new trial denied – The judge denies the new trial and moves onto sentencing
Part 6 – Victim statements, Ben’s statement, and the sentencing – Powerful victim statements, Ben’s statements where he claims he’s once again the victim, and then the sentencing where Ben receives the full sentence.

Motions, search warrants, and other documents

No commentary provided on any of the below. All the motions and information speaks for itself.

Ben Trial Transcripts and Motions – Index Page

What is the purpose of this page?

Pretrial Transcripts

Trial Transcripts

Sentencing

Motions, search warrants, and other documents

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