In small Rocky Mountain towns like Sheridan, Montana, neighbors notice things. They share stories. They share concerns.
That’s what happened at around 8:50 p.m. on a night in May 2020 when Madison County Sheriff’s Deputy Leah Cox was on patrol in the town.
According to court documents, she was approached by someone with a disturbing story. It involved a local pastor at Ruby Valley Baptist Church, and it was upsetting enough that this person insisted on remaininganonymous.
The anonymous source said a close family friend had witnessed what appeared to be a sexual assault at the church. The incident, according to this witness, allegedly took place in the church basement April 28, 2020.
The tip triggered an investigation and led to charges against Pastor Tony Aaron Shaw. Nearly four years later on Jan. 16 in Montana’s Fifth Judicial District Court in Virginia City, a jury found Shaw guilty of sexual assault against a female underage child.
Following his conviction, Shaw was ordered to have no unsupervised contact with minors.
He now awaits a second trial because in the course of the investigation, another alleged sexual assault case involving a minor came to light.
In both cases, Shaw allegedly used similar tactics so he could have physical contact with his victims.
According to court documents, Shaw would offer his victims lessons in self-defense as he proceeded to assault them.
‘That Ain’t Right’
After Cox received the tip from a concerned resident in Sheridan, she contacted the man who reportedly witnessed the assault in the Ruby Valley Baptist Church basement.
On April 28, 2020, Edward Bradshaw was working on a siding project for the church. He needed to use the restroom in the basement, and on his way there he witnessed something disturbing.
In court documents, Bradshaw recalled being startled and exclaiming, “Ah ha” at the sight of Pastor Shaw laying on top of a minor child on the basement floor.
Shaw was wearing sweatpants, and when he stood up as Bradshaw passed him on the way to the bathroom, it became clear to Bradshaw that Shaw was sexually aroused.
“The Defendant stood up and had a visible erection,” according to Bradshaw’s testimony to the Madison County Sheriff’s Office.
Asked if he was certain Shaw had an erection, Bradshaw stated, “There is no doubt about it. It sickened me to see what happened.”
Cox asked Bradshaw how the young victim reacted to the situation.
Cox later reported, “Bradshaw paused and said, ‘Helpless, helpless, I guess would be the word.’”
Bradshaw continued, stating Shaw and this person, “Are together all the time.”
Bradshaw also recalled witnessing another incident when he saw the victim running down the middle of the southbound lane of U.S. Highway 287 with “a terrified look on her face” and “looking over her shoulder.”
The investigative report noted Bradshaw’s comment that victim “never smiles.”
Bradshaw further explained that Shaw makes the girl “walk behind him like a dog,” and that she wears the same clothes every day.
When asked if this could be an innocent misunderstanding, Bradshaw stated, “You don’t wrestle with (a child), men don’t do that shit. That ain’t right.’”
Bradshaw went on to describe Shaw as “a very manipulative person. Bradshaw explained how all of the defendant’s kids and the defendant’s wife are scared to death of him.
“Bradshaw stated that Shaw never lets the girls go anywhere by themselves except to Walter’s, a local grocery store located on Main Street in Sheridan, directly east of the Defendant’s residence, and then back home.”
Bradshaw added that, “I know what I saw. I know what I saw.”
Authorities Close In
Based on Bradshaw’s testimony, on May 12, 2020, Deputy Cox applied for and was granted an arrest warrant for Shaw. Soon thereafter, Deputy Cox notified Child Protective Services (CPS) about the case.
The next day around 11:30 a.m., several officers from the Madison County Sheriff’s Office arrested Shaw at his home.
When officers explained the situation, Shaw reportedly told the officers that this all must be because Shaw had disciplined the victim.
Shaw was transported to the Gallatin County Detention Center in Bozeman.
Initial charges filed in Montana’s Fifth Judicial District Court, Madison County, included sexual abuse of children and endangering the welfare of children.
Three days after Shaw’s arrest, investigators interviewed the victim seen in the church basement with Shaw. She initially denied any sexual abuse, but did recall being forced by Shaw to watch videos featuring naked women. This allegedly happened in the pastor’s study at the church.
As court records later indicated, the victim revised her testimony with entries into her journal.
Journal entries included in court documents show the girl stating, “I’m sorry I haven’t been telling the truth about (what happened)! Tony has been touching me! I just didn’t want to be moved AGAIN, but now the more I think about it, I feel sick. I feel like a stupid dork. I haven’t told you. I’m so sorry.”
From there, many more details came to light through the girl’s testimony. She said the alleged abuse started when she was 12.
Trial Delayed
Shaw was eventually released on a $75,000 bond. A jury trial was set for April 2021, but it was delayed, in part because Shaw’s attorney experienced health problems.
Benjamin Darrow of Missoula stepped in to represent Shaw, and the trial began Jan. 10, about three and a half years after the alleged crime.
Cowboy State Daily reached out to Darrow but did not hear back before deadline. Two defense witnesses were also contacted — a forensic psychologist and a private investigator — but both said they could not comment on the case.
Cowboy State Daily did reach the jury foreperson and former Madison County Sheriff Lee Edmisten, who confirmed that at trial, Shaw testified in his own defense.
At the conclusion of the five-day trial, Edmisten said the jury deliberated for about four hours.
“The jury weighed all evidence that was given pro and con, and we arrived at our guilty verdict unanimously,” said Edmisten, who didn’t want to comment further, but did wish the victim well.
Karate Lessons?
During the course of the investigation and trial, it came out that Shaw feigned teaching the victim self-defense as an excuse for him to have sexual contact with her. Shaw allegedly instructed her to hit him in the genitals.
“It’s weird,” the victim said in a pre-trial interview.
When the victim told Shaw to stop touching and kissing her, he reportedly told her, “I’m sorry, I can’t control it.”
Now, while he awaits sentencing, Shaw faces another charge. This one stems from alleged sexual assaults on a minor in 2015 and 2016, when Shaw said he wanted to teach a 13-year-old alleged victim karate, according to court documents.
While purportedly instructing her in self-defense, the alleged victim said Shaw, “Would touch her to demonstrate moves, but would grab her inappropriately when he did so.”
In one instance, when Shaw allegedly touched her vagina over her clothes while “showing her how to do a roundhouse kick,” this caused her to freeze, according to court documents.
Later, the alleged victim told a school counselor about Shaw’s inappropriate touching, and now Shaw faces a new trial in May.
As for where things stand with Shaw’s Jan. 16 sexual assault conviction, Madison County Attorney David Buchler said, “We are waiting for a presentence investigation report. Sentencing will be set once that has been completed.”
David Madison can be reached at david@cowboystatedaily.com.
