Missouri Psychologist Kurt Bumby Sentenced to 7 Years Prison for Sodomy of Young Boy

April 19, 2023

A Columbia psychologist convicted of statutory sodomy has been sentenced to seven years in prison.

Boone County Circuit Judge Brouck Jacobs sentenced 53-year-old Kurt Bumby this morning, noting the seven-year sentence is the maximum under Missouri state law. That’s also what the jury recommended.

Bumby was convicted of sodomy which occurred on several occasions in 2010 and 2011 involving a young boy. 

Judge Jacobs blasted Bumby in open court, saying he leaves behind two victims and that they’re both doing better, no thanks to Bumby. The judge also fined Bumby $5,000.

Bumby appeared for his sentencing via video from the Boone County jail wearing a jail jumpsuit. He did not display any emotion in court. One of the victims’ mothers appeared in court, but she did not testify. She did testify during the trial, and Judge Jacobs took her testimony into account.

Boone County prosecutor Olufunmike Owoso tells the court that one victim was repeatedly sexually assaulted. Judge Jacobs has rejected defense attorney Joel Schwartz’s motion for a new trial.

PSYCHCRIME NOTE: Bumby is a researcher and expert, specializing in the assessment and treatment of sex offenders.

From 2003 until approximately when he was criminally charged (2019), he was a Senior Associate with the Center for Effective Public Policy, and 40-year-old non-profit organization that operates in area of criminal justice to “to improve…justice systems and facilitate equitable, systemic, and sustainable change. We believe our criminal legal systems should work for all, and that all justice should be community justice.”

In that capacity, he provided training and technical assistance nationwide to policymakers, administrators, and practitioners across disciplines to support sex offender management, prisoner reentry, and other court-based initiatives.

Bumby’s prior positions included:

• Assistant Deputy Director and Clinical Director for the Missouri Division of Youth Services 
• Director of Juvenile and Sex Offender Services and Assistant Director of Correctional Mental Health Services for a private behavioral health corporation. 
• Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology with the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Medicine.

He also received awards for his research:

• In 1994, the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers gave him the Graduate Research Award for Research Excellence in the Field of Sex Offender Treatment
• In 1996, he was co-recipient of the Hugo G. Beigel Research Award from the Society for Scientific Study of Sexuality in 1996.

He is also a Past President of the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers.

Source: Matthew Sanders, “Columbia psychologist sentenced to prison for child sex crimes,” KMIZ ABC-7 News, Mar. 14, 2023, URL: https://abc17news.com/news/crime/2023/04/14/columbia-psychologist-sentenced-to-prison-for-child-sex-crimes/