CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) RESOURCE CENTER Read More
Add To Favorites

Parlier trials end with life in prison for former piano teacher

Pantagraph - 8/2/2022

Aug. 2—BLOOMINGTON — Aaron M. Parlier will officially spend the rest of his life in prison following a sentencing on Monday. The state has decided not to move forward with four more potential trials against him.

Judge Casey Costigan sentenced Parlier to natural life in prison for predatory criminal sexual assault of a child under the age of 13. Under state law, the charge carried a mandatory sentence of natural life given aggravating circumstances in the case.

Parlier was earlier sentenced to 450 years in prison on other counts. All of the abuse of which he was convicted happened while he was a piano teacher in the Bloomington area.

The life sentence had been expected since Parlier was found guilty of the count in April.

The sentence is important as a deterrence to others, Costigan said.

"If you violate children in this way, you will spend the rest of your life in prison," he said.

Parlier, 41, and his defense attorney Joseph Moran indicated they intend to appeal.

The sentence comes from the second of what could have been six trials, as the counts were separated into separate trials for each of Parlier's accusers. However, Assistant State's Attorney Erika Reynolds said that in talking with the other accusers, they decided not to move forward with the other charges and trials as they would not have significantly changed his sentence.

Costigan dismissed the remaining six counts at the state's request, meaning this was the last trial and sentencing on those charges.

In the latest trial Parlier was convicted of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child under 13 years old, aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a child under 13, child pornography and nine counts of criminal sexual assault of a minor.

Parlier was charged in 2018. At the time he was a piano teacher in Bloomington and lived in Mackinaw. Police began investigating him after a girl submitted an essay in high school that included mentions of being sexually assaulted by her piano teacher.

During the investigation, police found videos of other sexual assaults on children on a laptop from Parlier's home, leading to the additional charges.

The survivor of the assault testified in the second trial that she had started taking lessons with Parlier when she was 6 and that the assaults began when she was 8 and continued until she was 14. The survivor in the first trial was 8 or 9 in the videos Parlier made, her mother said during that trial.

During arguments at the sentencing, Reynolds said that she did not see a justification for giving less than the maximum sentence.

"I don't know that there's anything more that can be said in this case," she said.

Reynolds read a victim impact statement from the survivor at the sentencing. She has had long-term impacts, including depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder from the abuse she suffered, the statement said.

"I am worth more than being a victim, I'm a survivor," she said.

She also thanked the police officers, prosecutors and court for helping bring justice for herself, the other survivors and the community.

"Thank you for bringing me a piece of closure," she said.

For his part, Costigan thanked the survivors for coming forward, including testifying during the trials.

"The court understands that it takes a great deal of courage to come forward in a trial," he said. "(...) That courage has resulted in justice being done in this case."

Contact Connor Wood at (309)820-3240. Follow Connor on Twitter:@connorkwood

___

(c)2022 The Pantagraph (Bloomington, Ill.)

Visit The Pantagraph (Bloomington, Ill.) at www.pantagraph.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.