Author: Bret Gordon
Recently some information has been made public about a former member of the American Jidokwan Association, an organization I run alongside my instructor Steven Hatfield. Patrick Justice was a lifelong friend and student of Hatfield's in the art of American Jidokwan Taekwondo. In 2011 he was made President of the organization, a position he held until 2017. During this time, his involvement in the martial arts ranged between teaching adult students privately and being inactive at various periods. His position in the American Jidokwan Association was largely administrative and symbolic, as at the time Hatfield was not teaching Taekwondo and the other schools in the organization operated independently.
Customary for our organizations when accepting new members (especially in an administrative capacity) is to run a background check on them. Due to the friendship between Hatfield and Justice, this was never done on Justice. In late 2016 I became actively involved in the American Jidokwan Association on an organizational level, having been a member for several years, becoming the Florida State Representative as the organization began expanding outside of Ohio. In 2017, as Hatfield and I were sitting around discussing the organization's growth and other prospective members, the topic of Justice's background check came up and we realized one had never been done. What we found was shocking, to say the least.
In 2004, Patrick Justice was convicted of sexual battery and served three years in prison (view source). We immediately confronted him about this, giving him the option to either step down or be removed publicly. He was upfront about his record and chose to step down. He turned in his certifications and was dismissed from the American Jidokwan Association entirely. On October 3, 2017, I replaced him as President of the AJA which I hold to this day.
Customary for our organizations when accepting new members (especially in an administrative capacity) is to run a background check on them. Due to the friendship between Hatfield and Justice, this was never done on Justice. In late 2016 I became actively involved in the American Jidokwan Association on an organizational level, having been a member for several years, becoming the Florida State Representative as the organization began expanding outside of Ohio. In 2017, as Hatfield and I were sitting around discussing the organization's growth and other prospective members, the topic of Justice's background check came up and we realized one had never been done. What we found was shocking, to say the least.
In 2004, Patrick Justice was convicted of sexual battery and served three years in prison (view source). We immediately confronted him about this, giving him the option to either step down or be removed publicly. He was upfront about his record and chose to step down. He turned in his certifications and was dismissed from the American Jidokwan Association entirely. On October 3, 2017, I replaced him as President of the AJA which I hold to this day.
Now, I must say as the new President of the AJA and having met Justice on several occasions, bearing witness to the reformation and effort he had taken to get his life together in the 13 years since the incident, I made the decision not to publicly expose him as a sexual offender. I felt that we had handled the situation professionally and chose to keep it internal. There was no further affiliation between the AJA and Justice as he was dismissed immediately and stripped of all rank. This decision was entirely my own as President of the organization, and not influenced by Hatfield in any way. I also chose to leave him on our website, specifically the history section, as he was part of the organization's history but as of this morning, he has since been removed.
Prior to running his background check in 2017, neither I or Hatfield were aware of the conviction. Although Hatfield and Justice had known each other beforehand, it was not uncommon for Justice to travel, move and lose contact for various periods of time. Therefore, his three year absense was not questioned. It was an unfortunate oversight, and having known Hatfield as deeply as I do, I can assure you that had he known prior to 2017 it would've been handled immediately. When the conviction came to light is when it was addressed. I must note that he was never employed as an instructor at Hatfield's school, and never taught classes there except as a guest under the supervision of Hatfield. Justice was never left alone with any students, nor is any guest instructor at Hatfield's school.
Prior to running his background check in 2017, neither I or Hatfield were aware of the conviction. Although Hatfield and Justice had known each other beforehand, it was not uncommon for Justice to travel, move and lose contact for various periods of time. Therefore, his three year absense was not questioned. It was an unfortunate oversight, and having known Hatfield as deeply as I do, I can assure you that had he known prior to 2017 it would've been handled immediately. When the conviction came to light is when it was addressed. I must note that he was never employed as an instructor at Hatfield's school, and never taught classes there except as a guest under the supervision of Hatfield. Justice was never left alone with any students, nor is any guest instructor at Hatfield's school.
On behalf of the American Jidokwan Association, I would like to publicly apologize for the way this situation was handled. Although he had been removed from the organization, we should've made a public announcement regarding the situation back in 2017 and erased him from our history. Not doing so was poor judgement, and I understand the implications that may arise from this decision.
Sexual offense is not something to be taken lightly, and as a SafeSport certified martial artist, I am acutely aware of this problem across the martial arts (and youth sports in general) and am committed to ensuring not just those who are convicted offenders but all those displaying patterns of predatory behavior are not involved in the teaching of martial arts in any capacity. Both Hatfield and I denounce sexual offenders and violent criminals in all forms, and do not welcome them in our circle of friends, members or affiliates.
Sexual offense is not something to be taken lightly, and as a SafeSport certified martial artist, I am acutely aware of this problem across the martial arts (and youth sports in general) and am committed to ensuring not just those who are convicted offenders but all those displaying patterns of predatory behavior are not involved in the teaching of martial arts in any capacity. Both Hatfield and I denounce sexual offenders and violent criminals in all forms, and do not welcome them in our circle of friends, members or affiliates.
P.S. - There is an image on the Technician Dojo website of Hatfield and the instructors of the school, and it has been erroneously claimed that Justice is in this picture being represented as an instructor. The gentleman claimed to be Justice is actually John Bailey, 3rd Dan in Ryu-Saiichi-Do Karate. He is not affiliated to Justice in any way.
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EDIT (August 13, 2020) - In order to clarify for anyone who has read or will read this in the future, the options provided to Patrick Justice are the same options given in any professional organization or corporation when the person in question is found to have committed an offense warranting separation. He was given the choice to step down or be removed publicly, and we accepted his resignation. At the time, we felt severing all ties was an adequate and timely response, carried out immediately after we became aware of the conviction. While I have apologized for not making his conviction public through the association, although it is already easily accessible public record, please do not mistake this for support or concealment of Justice's actions.
EDIT (August 14, 2020) - The trolls who continue to attack us have clung onto this situation as their last attempt to discredit Hatfield and myself, after a previous article (click here) fully detailed all of our credentials and put that scrutiny to rest. First, they falsely claim that we knew about Justice's conviction prior to 2017 to which I maintain that we had no knowledge of it, and acted immediately after becoming aware to ensure the safety of our students and the integrity of our organization. But most disturbingly, Don Roley and "Lordus Sapiens" outright lie that Justice was convicted of a heinous act, rape of a minor under 13-years-old. The background check we conducted showed that these charges were dismissed. Therefore, claiming Justice is a "pedophile" or "child rapist" is explicitly incorrect and defamatory, and no one knows the origin of such charges to begin with. I only bring it up now to silence the liars, as judging someone based on charges that were dismissed is asinine.
Justice's only sexual offense conviction was for "sexual battery," which is a broad characterization of offenses ranging from engaging in intercourse with an intoxicated individual to statutory rape. Attached below is the official record from the Franklin County Municipal Court public records search (click here) showing the dismissed charge. Also of note that Justice is not required to register based on his distinction as "(Pre-AWA) Sexual Oriented Offender," and is not found on the Ohio sexual offenders registry (click here).
EDIT (August 14, 2020) - The trolls who continue to attack us have clung onto this situation as their last attempt to discredit Hatfield and myself, after a previous article (click here) fully detailed all of our credentials and put that scrutiny to rest. First, they falsely claim that we knew about Justice's conviction prior to 2017 to which I maintain that we had no knowledge of it, and acted immediately after becoming aware to ensure the safety of our students and the integrity of our organization. But most disturbingly, Don Roley and "Lordus Sapiens" outright lie that Justice was convicted of a heinous act, rape of a minor under 13-years-old. The background check we conducted showed that these charges were dismissed. Therefore, claiming Justice is a "pedophile" or "child rapist" is explicitly incorrect and defamatory, and no one knows the origin of such charges to begin with. I only bring it up now to silence the liars, as judging someone based on charges that were dismissed is asinine.
Justice's only sexual offense conviction was for "sexual battery," which is a broad characterization of offenses ranging from engaging in intercourse with an intoxicated individual to statutory rape. Attached below is the official record from the Franklin County Municipal Court public records search (click here) showing the dismissed charge. Also of note that Justice is not required to register based on his distinction as "(Pre-AWA) Sexual Oriented Offender," and is not found on the Ohio sexual offenders registry (click here).
| patrickjustice-rapeunder13-dismissed.pdf |
EDIT (August 15, 2020) - In light of new information, I must amend my last edit. The record attached above states that the charges were "Dismissed Direct Indictment." When we received these records as part of the 2017 background check, I mistook this for meaning the charges were dismissed entirely as I asserted above. At this time, I cannot comment on the details of the case but I am glad that Hatfield and I took swift action to remove him from our circle as we did. I also reaffirm that in the entire time I have been affiliated with Hatfield, he has shown nothing but the utmost integrity and honor. I maintain that neither he or I had any knowledge of Justice's criminal record prior to 2017. Going forward, this has become an active legal matter. Therefore, no further comments will be addressed regarding this situation.
Please view "PSA: Patrick Justice (Part 2)" by clicking here for more information.
Please view "PSA: Patrick Justice (Part 2)" by clicking here for more information.
