Sexual assault happens every day, as much as most people don’t like to think about it. But when children are the victims, it’s simply unimaginable. Recently, a jury found an Ohio man was guilty of sexually assaulting his stepdaughter, who gave birth to his child.
According to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, or RAINN, on average 463,634 people are victims of sexual assault each year in the US. And this only accounts for those 12 and older. Sadly, victims much younger also endure such abuse, such as the stepdaughter in Ohio who became a mother at 11.
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The Ohio man was found guilty of sexually assaulting his stepdaughter.
On November 19, a Franklin County, Ohio, jury found the 48-year-old man from Columbus guilty of two charges, according to a news release from the Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. The first count was for rape of a child under the age of 13. The second count was for gross sexual imposition.
In 2021, the man's daughter and two stepdaughters made disturbing allegations.
In August 2021, the man’s daughter, 11, and two adult stepdaughters told Columbus police that he sexually abused them, The Raleigh News and Observer reported. The daughter alleged that her father sexually abused her, according to a court document cited by the news outlet. Additionally, the two stepdaughters alleged the stepfather raped them from 2008 through 2019 when they were between 11 and 17, NBC 4 reported.
The stepdaughters didn't report the abuse until they were adults because of fear.
The two stepdaughters told police they didn’t come forward about the sexual abuse until they were adults because they were afraid of their stepfather, The News and Observer reported. Additionally, they said they had only recently learned of the alleged abuse the 11-year-old sister endured.
In 2022, charges were filed against the stepfather, and he was arrested in January 2023.
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Allegedly, he impregnated one of the stepdaughters, who gave birth when she was 11.
The stepfather reportedly impregnated one of his stepdaughters (now an adult teenager) during the period of abuse. When she was 11, she gave birth to a child, police said, per The News & Observer. A DNA test confirmed he was the child’s father, NBC 4 reported.
The stepfather will be sentenced next month.
The Ohio man’s sentencing date is December 17. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole after 15 years, according to the release from the district attorney’s office. Thus far, it is unclear whether he may face other charges related to his stepdaughters.
