Franklin D. Schafer, convicted June 18 of sexually abusing a 6-year-old girl as her 7-year-old brother watched, was sentenced Thursday to 20 years to life in prison.
Schafer, 50, of Dickersonville Road, Porter, is planning an appeal. He did not take the bait when Niagara County Judge Sara Sheldon Sperrazza advised him to “own up” to what he did.
“There’s a lot of things I can say,” Schafer said. But he kept them to himself.
A letter from the victims’ mother, read aloud in court, called Schafer “a horrible monster.”
“It makes me sick to my stomach when I hear anyone believe Frank over my children,” the mother wrote.
Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth R. Donatello said of Schafer, “He has forfeited his right to live in decent society.”
After 15 hours of deliberations and re-reading of testimony over a two-day period, the jury found Schafer guilty of predatory sexual assault against a child for having oral sex with the girl. Schafer also was convicted of first-degree sexual abuse and two counts of child endangerment.
The jury acquitted Schafer on another predatory assault count that accused him of having intercourse with the girl. The incidents occurred Jan. 3 in Schafer’s home.
Defense attorney Scott Stepien filed a motion, which was denied, asking Sperrazza to overturn the verdict because of a purported error in re-reading the 6-year-old’s testimony to the jury.
At Stepien’s request, Sperrazza had ordered that the children be told not to mention a particular sex act. When the girl got into that on the stand, Sperrazza said, “Let’s move on.” In the read-back, that part was omitted.
Sperrazza said Thursday that the girl’s testimony was practically whispered. “I am confident the jury did not hear the three or four words that are at issue,” she said.
Donatello noted that Stepien agreed with that at the time. Quoting the trial transcript, Donatello said Stepien commented, “I think it’s pretty obvious the jury didn’t hear it.”
“He chose not to bring it up,” Donatello said. “To ask the court to revisit it is ludicrous.”
Stepien said he thinks Schafer’s conviction will be overturned on appeal based on precedents regarding incomplete assistance to the jury. But Donatello said “objectionable testimony” need not be read back.
She also denounced Stepien for calling the children “pathological liars” in the written text of his motion to overturn the verdict. “Unconscionable,” the prosecutor called it.
Sperrazza rebuked Stepien, saying no evidence about the children’s reputation for truth or falsehood was offered.
Stepien said he did not present such evidence because he thought Sperrazza would rule it inadmissible.
Showing posts with label child endangerment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label child endangerment. Show all posts
Friday, August 14, 2009
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Dana Stevenson Tries to Stab Young Boy in Grocery Store
A young boy received minor injuries from a woman who allegedly held a knife to his throat in the middle of a crowded grocery store in Vallejo, according to authorities.
The Vallejo Police Department says they received reports just after noon Saturday that a woman was trying to stab people inside a Grocery Outlet at 66 Admiral Callaghan Lane. When officers arrived, they say they found store employees and shoppers holding down 47-year-old Dana Stevenson.
Stevenson allegedly walked into the produce section of the story and put a seven-year-old boy in a chokehold and placed a steak knife against his neck.
Witnesses say she began "rambling" about Chinese organized crime and Michael Jackson while dragging the boy from one side of the produce section to the other.
The boy's stunned parents began grappling with the woman. The boy's mother grabbed the suspect's knife hand, sustaining a small laceration in her palm, and the father wrestled the suspect's arms away from the boy.
Other bystanders jumped in to restrain her until police officers arrived.
The child sustained minor scrapes and abrasions on his neck and was shaken up, but otherwise unharmed, according to police. The family says they didn't know the suspect.
Stevenson was arrested and charged with felony child endangerment, kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon
The Vallejo Police Department says they received reports just after noon Saturday that a woman was trying to stab people inside a Grocery Outlet at 66 Admiral Callaghan Lane. When officers arrived, they say they found store employees and shoppers holding down 47-year-old Dana Stevenson.
Stevenson allegedly walked into the produce section of the story and put a seven-year-old boy in a chokehold and placed a steak knife against his neck.
Witnesses say she began "rambling" about Chinese organized crime and Michael Jackson while dragging the boy from one side of the produce section to the other.
The boy's stunned parents began grappling with the woman. The boy's mother grabbed the suspect's knife hand, sustaining a small laceration in her palm, and the father wrestled the suspect's arms away from the boy.
Other bystanders jumped in to restrain her until police officers arrived.
The child sustained minor scrapes and abrasions on his neck and was shaken up, but otherwise unharmed, according to police. The family says they didn't know the suspect.
Stevenson was arrested and charged with felony child endangerment, kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon
Friday, July 24, 2009
Robert Crawford Arrested for Child Abuse
Centralia police arrested a child abuse suspect.
Robert C. Crawford, 30, allegedly endangered the life of his 19 month old son by punching him in the chest and in another instance grabbing and squeezing his son’s face in excess.
The acts were reported by family members who claimed to witness the acts.
After an investigation, Crawford is charged with Class C felony charges , two counts of child abuse and one count of child endangerment.
Crawford is in the Boone County jail with a bond of $13,000.
The case is ongoing and the child is in the custody of his mother.
Robert C. Crawford, 30, allegedly endangered the life of his 19 month old son by punching him in the chest and in another instance grabbing and squeezing his son’s face in excess.
The acts were reported by family members who claimed to witness the acts.
After an investigation, Crawford is charged with Class C felony charges , two counts of child abuse and one count of child endangerment.
Crawford is in the Boone County jail with a bond of $13,000.
The case is ongoing and the child is in the custody of his mother.
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Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Tiffany Hyman Indicted for Child Abuse
The fiancée of the Worcester man accused of beating his 7-year-old son to death was indicted yesterday on a series of charges, including being an accessory to the assault, Worcester District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr. said.
Tiffany N. Hyman, 29, of Worcester was indicted by a Worcester County grand jury on charges of being an accessory after the fact of assault and battery on a child with substantial injury, reckless endangerment, permitting assault and battery on a child with substantial injury, assault and battery on a child with bodily injury, and assault and battery on a child with substantial injury, according to Early.
Nathaniel D. Turner died June 23 after he was beaten to death by his father, Leslie G. Schuler, Early said. Schuler is charged with murder.
Tiffany N. Hyman, 29, of Worcester was indicted by a Worcester County grand jury on charges of being an accessory after the fact of assault and battery on a child with substantial injury, reckless endangerment, permitting assault and battery on a child with substantial injury, assault and battery on a child with bodily injury, and assault and battery on a child with substantial injury, according to Early.
Nathaniel D. Turner died June 23 after he was beaten to death by his father, Leslie G. Schuler, Early said. Schuler is charged with murder.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Three People Accused of Letting Rats Bite 6-week-old Baby
Three people have been accused of letting rats bite a 6-week-old girl and chew off her toes at their cluttered Ohio mobile home.
Pike County prosecutor Rob Junk says the baby's toes on one foot were gone when sheriff's deputies went to the home Sunday after receiving an anonymous tip.
The baby is in fair condition at a Columbus hospital.
A married couple and the 18-year-old boyfriend of the baby's mother are charged with felony child endangering. They were in court for an initial hearing Tuesday. They're jailed pending a plea hearing in two weeks.
The prosecutor says they all lived in the mobile home west of Piketon, a village noted for its old uranium enrichment plant.
He says the baby's mother is a juvenile. He won't identify her or say if she'll be charged.
Pike County prosecutor Rob Junk says the baby's toes on one foot were gone when sheriff's deputies went to the home Sunday after receiving an anonymous tip.
The baby is in fair condition at a Columbus hospital.
A married couple and the 18-year-old boyfriend of the baby's mother are charged with felony child endangering. They were in court for an initial hearing Tuesday. They're jailed pending a plea hearing in two weeks.
The prosecutor says they all lived in the mobile home west of Piketon, a village noted for its old uranium enrichment plant.
He says the baby's mother is a juvenile. He won't identify her or say if she'll be charged.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Judge Denies Bail for Jeremy Hendrex Arrested for Child Abuse
A judge is refusing to grant bail or house arrest for a man convicted last week of child abuse involving his infant daughter.
The request had been made by the attorney of Jeremy Hendrex, 29, of Sandusky and formerly of Weathersfield who was convicted Wednesday of seriously injuring his infant daughter. His attorney, Patrick Donlin, said in court documents he plans to file an appeal in the case.
Donlin's two separate motions filed Friday in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court seeking bail for his client were denied by Judge Peter Kontos.
The first motion asked the court to grant post-conviction bail or house arrest for Hendrex pending his sentencing Aug. 24. The second asked the court to grant post-conviction bail pending an appeal of Hendrex's conviction.
Hendrex had his bond revoked following his conviction Wednesday and remains at the Trumbull County Jail. He faces between two and eight years behind bars for felonious assault and child endangering, both second-degree felonies.
The felonious assault alleged that Hendrex caused ''serious physical harm'' to his daughter, 10-week-old Alyssa Jarome, on Sept. 22, 2007. The endangering charge alleged that Hendrex was reckless in causing injuries to the child.
The jury decided Hendrex intentionally caused the injuries.
Donlin told the jury there was clearly reasonable doubt after conflicting testimony from his medical expert and several experts from Cleveland Clinic offering reports or called to the witness stand by the prosecution.
Doctors who testified for the prosecution said they detected two skull fractures that could have come only from deliberate blows.
A physician from Washington, D.C., testifying for the defense said he found no fractures and that initial seizures suffered by the infant were most likely from a condition developed at birth.
Alyssa, now 2, speaks about only 10 words and is considered developmentally delayed and blind in one eye, caused by retinal bleeding.
In early statements, the defendant admitted nothing. But in final statements captured on tape, he admits the baby hit her head on a bathtub faucet, slipped off his lap on to the floor and tripped over an electrical cord under a rug. He also said the baby fell from his arms onto wooden trim on a sofa in the Weathersfield trailer he shared with the child's mother.
The request had been made by the attorney of Jeremy Hendrex, 29, of Sandusky and formerly of Weathersfield who was convicted Wednesday of seriously injuring his infant daughter. His attorney, Patrick Donlin, said in court documents he plans to file an appeal in the case.
Donlin's two separate motions filed Friday in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court seeking bail for his client were denied by Judge Peter Kontos.
The first motion asked the court to grant post-conviction bail or house arrest for Hendrex pending his sentencing Aug. 24. The second asked the court to grant post-conviction bail pending an appeal of Hendrex's conviction.
Hendrex had his bond revoked following his conviction Wednesday and remains at the Trumbull County Jail. He faces between two and eight years behind bars for felonious assault and child endangering, both second-degree felonies.
The felonious assault alleged that Hendrex caused ''serious physical harm'' to his daughter, 10-week-old Alyssa Jarome, on Sept. 22, 2007. The endangering charge alleged that Hendrex was reckless in causing injuries to the child.
The jury decided Hendrex intentionally caused the injuries.
Donlin told the jury there was clearly reasonable doubt after conflicting testimony from his medical expert and several experts from Cleveland Clinic offering reports or called to the witness stand by the prosecution.
Doctors who testified for the prosecution said they detected two skull fractures that could have come only from deliberate blows.
A physician from Washington, D.C., testifying for the defense said he found no fractures and that initial seizures suffered by the infant were most likely from a condition developed at birth.
Alyssa, now 2, speaks about only 10 words and is considered developmentally delayed and blind in one eye, caused by retinal bleeding.
In early statements, the defendant admitted nothing. But in final statements captured on tape, he admits the baby hit her head on a bathtub faucet, slipped off his lap on to the floor and tripped over an electrical cord under a rug. He also said the baby fell from his arms onto wooden trim on a sofa in the Weathersfield trailer he shared with the child's mother.
Friday, July 10, 2009
John Esposito Charged with Sexual Assault
A former Netcong school crossing guard was indicted today on charges of sexually assaulting a child more than a decade ago, and exposing himself to four other children between 2004 and 2008.
John Esposito, 73, of Netcong was charged in August with aggravated sexual assault and child endangerment. Esposito was arrested after the then 15-year-old victim told a witness about the alleged sexual acts Esposito performed on her between June 1997 and December 1998, authorities had said.
At that time, Esposito, who had been a crossing guard for nearly 10 years, allegedly admitted to investigators that he performed sexual acts on the girl, who was between the ages of 4 and 6 at the time of the alleged sexual assault, authorities had said.
An indictment handed up by a grand jury in Superior Court in Morris County charges Esposito with first- and second-degree aggravated sex assault on the girl and two counts of third-degree endangering for incidents that occurred between June 1, 1997 and Dec. 31, 1998.
He was indicted also on four counts of fourth-degree lewdness that occurred between 2004 and 2008, of exposing himself in Netcong to four other children under the age of 13, according to the indictments.
Police suspended Esposito from the crossing guard post, though the criminal charges were not related to his job, authorities had said.
The lewdness charges relate to four other victims who came forward after the initial arrest, and those offenses also did not involve Esposito's position as a crossing guard, authorities said.
Esposito remains free on $100,000 bail.
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http://www.dailyrecord.com/article/20090710/COMMUNITIES/90709076/1005/NEWS01
John Esposito, 73, of Netcong was charged in August with aggravated sexual assault and child endangerment. Esposito was arrested after the then 15-year-old victim told a witness about the alleged sexual acts Esposito performed on her between June 1997 and December 1998, authorities had said.
At that time, Esposito, who had been a crossing guard for nearly 10 years, allegedly admitted to investigators that he performed sexual acts on the girl, who was between the ages of 4 and 6 at the time of the alleged sexual assault, authorities had said.
An indictment handed up by a grand jury in Superior Court in Morris County charges Esposito with first- and second-degree aggravated sex assault on the girl and two counts of third-degree endangering for incidents that occurred between June 1, 1997 and Dec. 31, 1998.
He was indicted also on four counts of fourth-degree lewdness that occurred between 2004 and 2008, of exposing himself in Netcong to four other children under the age of 13, according to the indictments.
Police suspended Esposito from the crossing guard post, though the criminal charges were not related to his job, authorities had said.
The lewdness charges relate to four other victims who came forward after the initial arrest, and those offenses also did not involve Esposito's position as a crossing guard, authorities said.
Esposito remains free on $100,000 bail.
______________________
http://www.dailyrecord.com/article/20090710/COMMUNITIES/90709076/1005/NEWS01
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Phoenix Man & Woman Accused of Trying to Smuggle 2 Girls into the US
A Phoenix man and woman are accused of trying to smuggle two young children into the United States at southern Arizona's Douglas port of entry.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested the pair, identified only as a 22-year-old woman and a 21-year-old man, and turned them over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for investigation.
Officers screening passengers Tuesday at the port say they became suspicious of a couple accompanied by girls ages 8 and 4.
Border agents allege the couple was trying to bring in the children for monetary gain.
They say the 8-year-old told them the pair drilled them on things they should say in such a way that she became afraid.
The girls, who are not related, were given shelter while awaiting reunions with their families.
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http://www.svherald.com/articles/2009/07/04/news/doc4a4efd3d5ac52804317734.txt
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested the pair, identified only as a 22-year-old woman and a 21-year-old man, and turned them over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for investigation.
Officers screening passengers Tuesday at the port say they became suspicious of a couple accompanied by girls ages 8 and 4.
Border agents allege the couple was trying to bring in the children for monetary gain.
They say the 8-year-old told them the pair drilled them on things they should say in such a way that she became afraid.
The girls, who are not related, were given shelter while awaiting reunions with their families.
__________________________
http://www.svherald.com/articles/2009/07/04/news/doc4a4efd3d5ac52804317734.txt
Monday, June 15, 2009
William Marshall Charged with Sexually Assaulting & Murdering Toddler
According to Metro Police, the toddler found dead in a dumpster last week was sexually assaulted and murdered. William Marshall has been charged in the crime. He is the boyfriend of the child's mother.
The police report spells out horrific acts of abuse. The attack against the baby was very violent.
According to police documents, Marshall was babysitting Shia but something went horribly wrong. Inside apartment 67, detectives found two divots in the drywall of the bedroom that appear to be the size of a toddler's head. They also found hair similar to the toddler's inside the apartment's empty freezer.
The coroner found evidence that Shia was also sexually assaulted.
"They're defenseless. This kid couldn't defend herself against a guy that's 230 pounds. That's unfortunate," said Metro Lt. Lew Roberts.
The FBI tracked both Marshall and the baby's mother, Darrean Williams, to Phoenix Saturday night. They were together, but police say the mom apparently had no idea her daughter had been killed until the authorities came knocking. "It is our belief that, at that point is when she actually found out what the fate of the child was," said Lt. Roberts.
According to the report, a family member told police that Williams is a prostitute who works in the Phoenix area. She left Shia with Marshall to "earn money" in Phoenix.
For now, the crime has left the community shocked and saddened. "I wouldn't think of doing nothing like that to defenseless children, and I think it's just horrible and I think they should be brought to justice," said neighbor Lekeshia Holloman.
For now, Williams has not been charged, but may face other charges of as child endangerment or neglect.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Stacy Wright-Farmer Charged with Sexual Abuse of Child
An investigation into the discovery of sexually explicit photographs of a juvenile found at a residence in Alaska has resulted in the arrest of a McDowell County woman on multiple charges, police said Monday.
Stacy Wright-Farmer, 31, of Cucumber, is charged with sexual assault first-degree, sexual abuse first degree, sexual abuse by a custodian, incest, distribution of child pornography and child endangerment, according to Senior Trooper B.J. Garrettson of the West Virginia State Police Welch Detachment.
Garrettson said officials in McDowell County were contacted Sunday by a federal agent in Alaska representing the U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency. Garrettson said the call was in reference to a search warrant that was executed at a residence in Alaska.
Garrettson said the search warrant in Alaska uncovered several photographs of Wright-Farmer and a female juvenile that were “sexually explicit” and “pornographic in nature.”
“After looking at the photos, we served the search warrant on the residence of Mrs. Farmer who was staying out over in the Cucumber area in McDowell County in which several computers, digital cameras, and digital recorders were seized during the execution of our search warrant,” Garretson said. “Mrs. Farmer was arrested last night and taken to the Welch holding facility. There are several different charges stemming from sexual assault first-degree, sexual abuse first-degree, sexual abuse by a parent or custodian, incest, distribution of child pornography and child endangerment. There were a total of 75 counts.”
Garrettson was assisted in the investigation by Cpl. D.C. Eldridge, Cpl. C.K. Moton, Senior Trooper K.L. Pack, Senior Trooper J.W. Keffer, and Trooper B.A. Woods with assistance from agents with the U.S. Immigrations and Customs service.
“This is still an ongoing investigation,” Garrettson said.
Stacy Wright-Farmer, 31, of Cucumber, is charged with sexual assault first-degree, sexual abuse first degree, sexual abuse by a custodian, incest, distribution of child pornography and child endangerment, according to Senior Trooper B.J. Garrettson of the West Virginia State Police Welch Detachment.
Garrettson said officials in McDowell County were contacted Sunday by a federal agent in Alaska representing the U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency. Garrettson said the call was in reference to a search warrant that was executed at a residence in Alaska.
Garrettson said the search warrant in Alaska uncovered several photographs of Wright-Farmer and a female juvenile that were “sexually explicit” and “pornographic in nature.”
“After looking at the photos, we served the search warrant on the residence of Mrs. Farmer who was staying out over in the Cucumber area in McDowell County in which several computers, digital cameras, and digital recorders were seized during the execution of our search warrant,” Garretson said. “Mrs. Farmer was arrested last night and taken to the Welch holding facility. There are several different charges stemming from sexual assault first-degree, sexual abuse first-degree, sexual abuse by a parent or custodian, incest, distribution of child pornography and child endangerment. There were a total of 75 counts.”
Garrettson was assisted in the investigation by Cpl. D.C. Eldridge, Cpl. C.K. Moton, Senior Trooper K.L. Pack, Senior Trooper J.W. Keffer, and Trooper B.A. Woods with assistance from agents with the U.S. Immigrations and Customs service.
“This is still an ongoing investigation,” Garrettson said.
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