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First trial since pandemic results in 20-year sentence for man convicted for sex offenses

Messenger-Inquirer - 6/5/2021

Jun. 5—Daviess Circuit Court's first criminal trial since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic ended Thursday evening with the jury recommending the defendant serve 20 years in prison.

Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Mike Van Meter said the jury found Michael Aaron Robertson, 32, of Utica, guilty of first-degree rape after a two-day trial.

Robertson was charged in October with two counts of first-degree rape for incidents involving a juvenile. The trial included the victim testifying, Van Meter said.

"The child testified, live and in-person, in front of the jury," Van Meter said Friday. "The case boiled down to, completely in my opinion, if the jury believed this child, and they did."

Later, Van Meter said, "I'm grateful that the jury listened to the child victim, and gave her an opportunity to be heard and believed."

Jury selection involved two jury panels coming in at separate times to reduce crowding the courtroom.

"It worked out quite well," Van Meter said of the trial. He said some jurors wore masks, "and some didn't. None of the parties wore masks."

The sentence calls for Robertson to serve a total of 20 years in prison. The charge falls under the state's violent offender law, so Robertson will have to serve 85% of his sentence before he becomes eligible for parole.

Robertson will also have to complete sex offender program before being considered for parole, and will have to register for a lifetime as a sex offender.

Judge Jay Wethington will sentence Robertson on Aug. 8.

Van Meter said "Marsy's Law," a victim's bill of rights constitutional amendment that voters approved in November, was a factor in the trial.

"The trial was the first application of Marsy's Law in Daviess County," Van Meter said.

The constitutional amendment gives victims the right to participate in all parts of the trial process, including being heard and being informed of hearings and if the defendant is released. When the victim is a juvenile, those rights extend to the juvenile's parents.

Van Meter said the law allowed the victim's father to be in the courtroom during the trial. A state criminal rule requires witnesses be kept out of a trial until after they have completed their testimony.

"The father was a witness, and Marsy's Law allowed him to be present in the courtroom the whole time," Van Meter said.

The trial was the second lengthy verdict handed down in a sex abuse case this week. On Tuesday, Brandon M. Sally, 48, of the 1800 block of Triplett Street, pleaded guilty to multiple sexual abuse charges involving a juvenile victim in exchange for a 30-year prison sentence.

Sally was indicted on 25 counts, including charges of first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy, use of a minor in a sexual performance under age 16, promoting a sexual performance in a minor under age 16, and distributing material depicting a sexual performance by a minor.

The Kentucky State Police Internet Crimes Against Children began an investigation after receiving a tip in 2018 that led investigators to track images of child pornography that were being uploaded for Sally's IP address. Later, when investigators search Sally's Tumblr account, they found images that included Sally sexually abusing a juvenile.

"A face wasn't in the images, but we were able to prove it was the defendant" through the location in the images and through tattoos in Sally's arm, Van Meter said.

"He pleaded guilty as charged to every count," Van Meter said.

The recommended sentence is 30 years in prison. By state law, people sentenced to more than 24 years become eligible for parole after serving 20 years.

Sally will have to complete a sex offender program before he will be considered for parole.

Because he pleaded guilty, Sally has forfeited his right to appeal. The family of the victim was consulted in crafting the plea agreement, Van Meter said.

"It's finality for the family — not that finality means closure," Van Meter said. "The family certainly would want the maximum (sentence), but they understand the law."

Sally will be sentenced on Sept. 14.

James Mayse, 270-691-7303, jmayse@messenger-inquirer.com, Twitter: @JamesMayse

James Mayse, 270-691-7303, jmayse@messenger-inquirer.com, Twitter: @JamesMayse

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