Christian Sentenced for Sexual Assault

A homeless man gets probation for sexually assaulting two girls while staying with a member of his church.

19-year-old James Olson was sentenced Tuesday in La Crosse County Court to four years probation.

Olson was taken in by a female member of his church last year, and admitted to inappropriately touching the woman's daughter and the daughter's friend.

Jewish Rabbi Sentenced for Sexual Abuse

A Brooklyn jury today convicted an orthodox rabbi of repeatedly sexually abusing a 16-year-old classmate of his son.

The panel of 10 women and two men deliberated less than half a day before finding the rabbi, Baruch Lebovits, 58, guilty of eight counts of sexual abuse.

The teen said the rabbi lured him into his car by offering to let him drive, then unzipped his fly and performed oral sex on him.

Lebovits had no reaction as the jury forewoman read the verdict, but sniffles and gasps were heard from the roughly 30 assembled friends and relatives.

Justice Patricia DiMango ordered the rabbi remanded pending sentence. He faces up to 32 years behind bars.

"I understand that there are a significant number of Jewish holidays coming up, and I am sorry," she said.

Methodist Church Secretary Pleads Guilty of Embezzlement

The former secretary of the Mount Holly Springs United Methodist Church pleaded guilty today in Cumberland County Court to embezzling thousands of dollars from the church's emergency fund for the needy.

Jane Poth, 50, of Newville, pleaded guilty to one count of theft by unlawful taking, Senior Assistant District Attorney Daniel Sodus said. She has no plea agreement and investigators are still determining how much was taken, he said. Poth is to be sentenced by Judge Edward E. Guido in May.

When Poth was arrested in July, state police said she had stolen about $35,000 from the church between 2001 and the fall of 2008.

Christian Nurse Sentenced for Sexual Battery of Mentally Disabled Man

A former male nurse convicted of sexually battering a mentally disabled man is sent to prison.

49-year-old Richard Chotiner arrived in a Tampa courtroom with Bible in hand. He's been out on a post-conviction bond since early 2009. That's when Judge J. Rogers Pagett sentenced Chotiner to 15 years in the Florida State Prison.

Instead of sending the former health care worker directly to prison, Pagett granted Chotiner a bond while the 2nd District Court of Appeals considered the case.

The appellate court re-affirmed Chotiner's conviction. Judge Chet Tharpe on Monday morning revoked Chotiner's appeal bond and ordered deputies to take him into custody.

Tharpe told Chotiner and his attorney that the sentence will be imposed when the Appeals court sends its mandate to his court.

Detectives say in May of 2007, Chotiner befriended a 23-year-old mentally disabled man at Adventure Island. Investigators say Chotiner then lured the man to his home on 39th Street, where he sexually battered him.

Methodist Sunday School Teacher Sentenced for $200,000 Fraud

Disbarred Erie lawyer J. Gregory Moore was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison this morning for stealing about $200,000 from estates in his care.

Moore's lawyer, William Weichler, argued that Moore -- a Vietnam War veteran, Sunday school teacher and community volunteer -- deserved probation.

Authorities have long remained silent on what "personal and business" expenses Moore covered with funds stolen from his clients.

But in a document meant to guide the judge at sentencing today, Assistant U.S. Attorney Christian Trabold said Moore handed out stolen client funds to known prostitutes and to causes he believed in, including a local church and a U.S. Congressional campaign.

In Friday's filing, Trabold said Moore's practice had become a "sham," and that he used stolen estate funds to pay staff wages and bonuses. He also used client funds for personal expenses like dental bills, utility payments, lawn care and car repair, Trabold said.

A series of checks were written to 15 women, none of whom had any apparent tie to his practice, Trabold said.

The checks, all in round sums ranging from $50 to $400, had messages like "Happy Birthday" or "Happy Thanksgiving" in the memo lines, Trabold said.

Most of the women received multiple checks. Three of the women had past prostitution convictions in Erie County or were known by Erie-area law enforcement to be prostitutes, Trabold said.

Other funds went to causes supported by Moore, Trabold said, including $5,000 to a Methodist church, $100 to a VFW post and $1,000 to a local nonprofit transitional living home for homeless and abused women.

"Moore's work in the community pales in comparison to his shameful use of clients' money to contribute to causes important to him," Trabold said.

Christian Man Sentenced for Financial Crimes

A federal judge on Friday sentenced a Lubbock businessman to 25 years in prison for financial crimes.

Benny Lee Judah must pay nearly $60 million in restitution to his victims in addition to serving the maximum amount of prison time for money-laundering and selling unregistered securities.

"Twenty-five years is not enough," said Julie Durham Hammer, whose family was among Judah's at least 250 victims. "What he did was unconscionable."

Victims of Judah's scam packed the gallery in U.S. District Court to watch Judge Sam Cummings sentence the man who took much of their life savings.

Judah pleaded guilty in November to the charges, admitting he operated a Ponzi scheme that fleeced investors of more than $50 million.

"I made some bad personal decisions and I made some bad business decision in my life," Judah said.

He then pointed out jobs his businesses created for Lubbock residents and the donations he gave to his church and to Texas Tech.

Franciscan Friar Senteced for Sexual Abuse... Again

Convicted sex offender Fr Ronald Bennett (75), who admitted he indecently assaulted a schoolboy during 'sex education' lessons, avoided jail yesterday.

He was handed a two-and-a- half-year jail sentence, which was suspended with a number of conditions, and his name will be added to the sex offenders' register for 10 years.

Bennett was a former sports master and spiritual adviser at Gormanston College in Co Meath, where the boy was a pupil at the time of the offences in 1973 and 1974.

Trim Circuit Court had previously heard that Bennett, who now lives in a friary in Killiney, Co Dublin, had been jailed in 2007 for two-and-a-half years by Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for indecently assaulting four other boys at the college.

State prosecutor Karl Hanahoe said that the offences had taken place on a weekly basis over a two-year period when the boy was aged 14 and 15.

The victim told Judge Donagh McDonagh he made his complaint after reading reports that Bennett had been given a five-year suspended sentence by Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for the offences against the other four boys.

"It caused me a lot of anger."

The DPP had subsequently appealed the suspended five-year sentence and the Court of Criminal Appeal ordered Bennett to serve two-and-a-half years of it with the balance suspended.

Judge McDonagh said that the appropriate sentence in the current case was two-and-a-half years and suspended it on a number of conditions, including that Bennett gave an undertaking to remain within the confines of the Franciscan friary for the next five years.

Muslim Sentenced for Rape of 59 Year Old Woman

A Baltimore man convicted of assaulting and raping a 59-year-old woman at gunpoint in 2007 in her Roland Park home, terrorizing that community, was sentenced to life plus 93 years in prison Friday.

"The only appropriate sentence [for the rape] is life," said Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge John A. Howard, who quoted from the opening of a "Law & Order" television series about sexual crimes being "especially heinous."

"If there's a case that demonstrates the truth of that statement," he said, "it is this case."

A jury found Roger L. Ervin, 48, of the 3100 block of Oakley Ave. guilty on nine counts in December, including first-degree rape, first-degree assault, armed robbery and first-degree burglary for forcing his way into the woman's home Aug. 23, 2007, as she prepared her dinner and unpacked groceries.

Ervin addressed the court, saying he was a faithful Muslim who had never even entertained the idea of hurting someone. He said he had a $70,000-a-year job and no reason to rob the woman of some pocket change and electronics.

"I haven't done anything to anyone in 25 years," he said. "I'm telling you, I would never rape, beat no woman."

Howard said the evidence showed otherwise. After the victim picked out an innocent man from a photo array, Ervin was identified through DNA. He also matched a sketch drawn from the victim's description.

Christian Sentenced for Sexual Exploitation

A Forsyth County man convicted on 12 counts of sexual exploitation of children will serve six years in prison.

Michael Terrence Cox, 57, pleaded guilty in January to the charges.

Forsyth County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey S. Bagley handed down the punishment Wednesday, which includes 14 years on probation following his release.

Cox will also have to register as a sex offender.

Before he was sentenced, the prosecution showed in court graphic sexual videos of children allegedly found on Cox’s computer.

Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Scalia noted that had Cox been making the images himself, he would be sentenced to at least 25 years in prison without parole and life on probation.

“For several months he was actively downloading this material,” Scalia said. “He had a how-to video to teach you how to molest children and infants and not get caught ... this is not a victimless crime and it’s appropriate for him to go to prison.”

David Harris, pastor of Cumming New Life Church, said he has known Cox for about five years and has found him to be a good person.

“This seems to me to be more of an aberration than a pattern,” Harris said, adding that he’s never observed Cox behaving inappropriately toward children at the church, nor has he asked to be involved in children’s programs there.

Baptist Church Member Convicted of Molestation... Again

Keith "Eric" Andersen of Noank was a well-regarded member of his church and a volunteer firefighter who also worked the polls on Election Day.

He also was a convicted sex offender who in July 2007 arranged for a 9-year-old Stonington girl to be home alone so that he could break into her family's trailer and molest her.

A New London jury in December had listened to testimony from the victim, who is now 12, and deliberated less than an hour before convicting him of two counts of risk of injury to a minor, fourth-degree sexual assault and second-degree burglary. He had two 1992 convictions in Virginia for aggravated sexual battery with an 11-year-old girl. He served six months in prison and five years probation for those crimes.

On Thursday, Judge Matthew E. Frechette sentenced Andersen to 15 years in prison followed by 35 years of the state's strictest form of probation. Andersen will be required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life because he is a repeat offender.

More than a dozen members of the Noank Baptist Church turned out in support of Andersen. They told the judge that Andersen has a "heart of gold" but suffers from a drinking problem. They suggested counseling would serve him better than incarceration. His sister, Kathryn Andersen, said he "treats ladies well" and is not a predator.