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An Ethel man who sexually assaulted two children and took explicit photos of them between September 2020 and December 2024 while “training” them in “how to get out of rape situations” was sentenced Wednesday in Lewis County Superior Court to 33 years to life in prison.
Dale Robert Smith, 50, pleaded guilty Jan. 13 to 11 felonies — five class A felony rape of a child charges, five class B felony child molestation and posession of depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct charges, and one class C felony rape of a child charge.
“I adopt the state’s probable cause statement as my own,” Smith stated in his written guilty plea.
Smith was arrested and booked into the Lewis County Jail at approximately 1:44 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 3, after the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office investigated a sexual assault reported by one of the victim’s parents on Monday, Dec. 2.
The parent reported that his daughter and his daughter’s friend, both of whom are under the age of 15, were both molested by Smith during a camping trip the year prior, according to charging documents filed in Lewis County Superior Court.
Smith represented himself as “a former police officer and bounty hunter” who had offered to teach the girls “self defense and how to get out of rape situations,” according to court documents.
Smith had one of the victims “write out a non-disclosure agreement on notebook paper as he did not want to get in trouble because he is no longer a certified instructor.”
Detectives interviewed both victims, who each disclosed instances where Smith sexually assaulted them during the “training,” which they said took place inside Smith’s vehicle and in a detached shop building in December 2023.
One of the victims “recalled feeling frozen, very uncomfortable, and squeezing (the other victim’s) hand as hard as she could during this,” according to court documents.
Smith provided both children with alcohol during the “training.”
He sexually abused one of the victims repeatedly for seven to eight years, starting when she was under the age of 10.
“(She) stated it all started with her ‘training’ and progressed from there,” according to court documents.
Smith also took nude photos of both children during the “training,” according to court documents.
One of the victims told police that “she asked Mr. Smith to delete the pictures, but she doesn’t think he did.”
Lewis County Sheriff’s Office personnel executed a search warrant on Smith’s residence in Ethel prior to his arrest. During the search, they found certificates of completion for the Bail Enforcement Academy and Dealing With Resistive Youth Training, as well as a variety of sexual items. Police also searched Smith’s phone, the content of which was included in the search warrant, and found multiple sexually explicit photos of both victims and videos of a subject, identified as Smith, sexually assaulting one of the victims.
“At least some of the videos have been created in 2024,” the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office stated in charging documents.
When questioned by deputies, Smith “said nothing other than to deny putting content on the internet when informed of his charges,” according to court documents.
While Smith had no criminal history prior to this case, the charges he pleaded guilty to raised his offender score to 30, setting his standard sentencing range at a minimum of 240 to 318 months and a maximum of life in prison.
As part of the plea deal Smith accepted, the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office agreed to not recommend federal charges against Smith, according to court documents.
Smith’s conviction in this case requires him to register as a sex offender. Lifetime sexual assault protection orders in favor of the two victims are in place.
