Brandon Keith Mitchell: Sex Offender’s Surrogacy Journey With Husband

A viral video celebrating a gay couple’s surrogacy journey and the birth of their son has erupted into a national firestorm. The controversy centers on Brandon Keith Riley-Mitchell, a Seven Valleys, Pennsylvania resident, after online investigators uncovered his status as a registered Tier 1 sex offender convicted of crimes involving a minor. This revelation has ignited fierce debate over child safety, surrogacy regulations, and potential legal loopholes in Pennsylvania that allowed Mitchell to gain custody. The situation raises profound ethical and legal questions about how individuals with serious criminal histories involving minors can become parents through surrogacy arrangements.

Mitchell’s Conviction and Teaching Career

Public records and court documents confirm Brandon Keith Riley-Mitchell, 39, pleaded guilty in 2016 to felony possession of child pornography and corruption of minors. At the time, Mitchell was a 30-year-old chemistry teacher at Downingtown West High School. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported in 2016 that investigators found over 12,000 explicit messages between Mitchell and a 16-year-old student, along with hundreds of sexually explicit videos of the minor on his personal laptop. Mitchell was arrested after attempting to solicit nude photos and sexual acts from the student. Despite facing a potential sentence of up to 23 months, he served only two months before release on parole. As a result of his conviction, Mitchell surrendered his teaching license and is barred from unsupervised contact with minors. He now works as a chemist for Eurofins BioPharma Product Testing in Lancaster.

The Viral Surrogacy Journey and Public Backlash

Mitchell and his husband, Logan Steven Riley, 34, documented their journey to parenthood via surrogacy, sharing heartwarming videos online. One such video, showcasing their son’s first year, gained significant traction. However, the tone shifted dramatically when Irish activist Derek Blighe reposted the video on July 27, 2025, adding a caption expressing grave concern for the child’s future. Blighe’s post garnered over a million views, triggering both support and accusations of homophobia. Initial defenders emphasized the child having “two loving male parents.” The narrative transformed entirely on July 28th when independent journalists, including Andy Ngo and Right Angle News Network, publicly identified Mitchell as a registered sex offender and detailed his 2016 conviction. This confirmation sparked widespread outrage, with critics accusing the couple of deliberately hiding Mitchell’s past from their surrogate and supporters during their 2020 GoFundMe campaign, which raised funds for their surrogacy journey.

Legal Concerns and Calls for Investigation

The core controversy lies in how Mitchell, a convicted sex offender against a minor, legally obtained parental rights. Reports suggest Pennsylvania’s surrogacy laws may contain loopholes that bypass the stringent background checks typically required in traditional adoption processes. Helen Gibson of the advocacy group Surrogacy Concern issued a forceful statement: “If it is correct that one of these men is a convicted sex offender, then this is deeply concerning. Local authorities must investigate immediately, including exploring removal of the child.” Gibson emphasized the vulnerability inherent in surrogacy, stating, “Surrogacy is not a child-centered act. Removing a child from their birth mother and primary safeguarding is cruel, unethical, and potentially enables child abuse. We need a global ban on surrogacy for all and we need it now. Children must come first.” This case has amplified calls for urgent legislative review of surrogacy regulations nationwide to ensure child safety is paramount.

The Fallout and Lingering Questions

Mitchell and Riley reside in a four-bedroom home in Seven Valleys, Pennsylvania. While Mitchell works in pharmaceuticals, Riley was an elementary school teacher in Baltimore as recently as 2020; his current employment status is unclear. Eurofins featured the couple in Pride-related social media posts last year. The couple has avoided direct media comment since the revelations. The situation leaves the public and child safety advocates demanding answers: How did a registered sex offender pass through the surrogacy process? What safeguards failed? And critically, what measures are being taken to protect the child involved?

Disclaimer: This report is based on verified public records, court documents, and statements from credible news organizations including The Philadelphia Inquirer (2016 reports on the conviction), and public statements from advocacy groups and individuals involved in the online discussion. The well-being of the minor child is of paramount concern.

The case of Brandon Keith Riley-Mitchell gaining parental custody through surrogacy despite his conviction for crimes against a minor exposes a potentially dangerous gap in Pennsylvania’s legal framework. It underscores the critical need for universal, stringent background checks in all paths to parenthood involving vulnerable children. As authorities face mounting pressure to investigate and child safety advocates demand reform, this disturbing situation serves as a stark reminder that legal loopholes must never compromise the fundamental protection of children. Contact your state legislators to demand a review of surrogacy laws.

Must Know

1. What is the “Pennsylvania surrogacy loophole” mentioned?
Reports suggest Pennsylvania’s surrogacy laws may lack the rigorous background checks mandated for traditional adoptions. This potentially allowed a convicted sex offender to gain parental rights through a surrogacy arrangement without undergoing the same level of scrutiny typically applied to adoptive parents, bypassing safeguards designed to protect children.

2. What was Brandon Keith Mitchell convicted of?
Mitchell pleaded guilty in 2016 to felony possession of child pornography and corruption of minors. The charges stemmed from his solicitation of explicit photos and acts from a 16-year-old student while he was a high school teacher. Investigators found thousands of explicit messages and hundreds of videos on his computer.

3. Is Logan Riley also a registered sex offender?
As of current public information and the Pennsylvania State Police sex offender registry (accessed July 2025), there is no indication that Logan Steven Riley is a registered sex offender. He was an elementary school teacher in Baltimore until at least 2020.

4. What are child safety advocates saying about this case?
Organizations like Surrogacy Concern have expressed deep alarm. Helen Gibson called for an immediate investigation by local authorities, including exploring the removal of the child, labeling the situation a potential enabler of child abuse and demanding urgent global reform of surrogacy practices to prioritize child welfare.