Sean Gardner, a former youth gymnastics coach, received a 90-year prison sentence after being found guilty of secretly recording female students in a Mississippi gym. Gardner, 39, pleaded guilty to three federal child pornography production charges. Judge Kristi Johnson sentenced him to the maximum 30 years for each charge.
The FBI arrested Gardner last summer, with the news initially reported by the Associated Press. This case sent shockwaves through the gymnastics community, reminding many of the highly publicized Larry Nassar case. Nassar had been convicted of abusing young gymnasts over 22 years.
Gardner admitted to placing a hidden camera in a bathroom at a Purvis, Mississippi gymnastics studio, recording students between December 2017 and April 2018. Investigators found videos on his computers highlighting at least 10 minors in compromising situations. The videos emerged during an investigation into separate abuse claims in Iowa.
Some former students from Chow’s Gymnastics and Dance Institute in Iowa accused Gardner of abuse, with these claims documented in police reports and civil lawsuits. Despite these allegations, Gardner hasn’t faced charges in Iowa yet, as authorities awaited the federal case results.
There have been criticisms of USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Center for SafeSport. Some women involved in the federal case claimed these organizations were informed of Gardner’s behavior in 2017 but did not act promptly. In 2022, he was suspended following abuse claims from a gymnast at Chow’s, leading to his firing. SafeSport investigated, revealing that Chow and others knew of the misconduct but did not report it as required by policy.
Legal proceedings against Gardner, USA Gymnastics, and Chow’s Gymnastics are still in progress.