Marketing prof's trial set to begin

The criminal trial of Wharton Marketing Professor Scott Ward, charged with soliciting sex from minors, is slated to begin Tuesday at Montgomery County Courthouse. The trial has been delayed three times since Ward's arrest in October 1993 -- primarily because of disputes concerning the charges levied against him. Ward is charged with 11 counts, including criminal attempts to commit corruption of minors, involuntary deviant intercourse and solicitation to commit prostitution. If convicted, he may face between 10 and 20 years in prison. He has pleaded innocent to all charges. Five of the charges are the result of a six-week-long, state-sponsored sting investigation. The remaining charges were filed in a civil suit brought by an 18-year-old man, known as B.M. He said that he and Ward had between 50 and 100 sexual encounters when he was between the ages of 13 and 14 years old. Ward's civil trial is scheduled to begin March 27. Montgomery County Judge Joseph O'Keefe ruled in the pre-trial hearing last month that the civil suit cannot begin until after the criminal proceedings are concluded. B.M. claimed he was payed between $20 and $25 to perform oral sex on the professor, and that the encounters took place in hotel rooms and later in Ward's home in the Philadelphia suburb of Ardmore. The civil charges include assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent infliction of emotional stress, negligence and fraud. Although Wharton officials said Ward continues his academic responsibilities in spite of the legal proceedings, the professor is not teaching any courses this semester and did not teach any courses last term either. The case is being prosecuted by Montgomery County Deputy District Attorney Tom Egan, the third prosecutor assigned to the case. Ward is being represented by Jean Green, a Norristown-based attorney.