KOHL CONVICTED OF 4 COUNTS OF SEXUAL ASSAULT OF A CHILD
Friday, January 18th, 2008 -- 12:28 PM
It took a jury of 8 men and 4 women just over 3 hours to find a Granton man guilty of four counts of sexual assault of a child Thursday.After several days of testimony, it could have been 59-year-old Stephen Kohl's own words that convinced a jury of his guilt.
The alleged victims, now out of high school, were only 8-years-old at the time of the assaults, which took place in the summer of 1996. According to court documents, they struggled to find the courage to come forward until just a couple years ago.
Assistant State Attorney General Barbara Oswald closed the trial Thursday reminding the jury of Kohl's own statement to investigators where he acknowledged struggling with sexual urges toward young girls?specifically, the alleged victims.
Kohl never denied the assaults took place, instead saying the victims were very honest and were probably telling the truth.
Oswald also recalled the testimony of other women who claimed to have been abused by Mr. Kohl, saying they didn't know each other. "There were no motives, no collaboration. There is no grand conspiracy here," Oswald urged.
But, defense attorney Bridget Boyle asserted the jury could not convict Mr. Kohl unless they determine beyond a reasonable doubt the alleged inappropriate touching occurred in the summer of 1996, and noted there had been several contradictory statements about the timeframe.
"(This case) is not as clear cut as Ms. Oswald has made it," Boyle argued.
The jury got the case at 3:15 p.m. and unanimously reached their verdict at 6:30 p.m. As Circuit Court Judge Jon Counsell read the verdicts, the victims and their family cried; Kohl, who didn't take the stand in his own defense, showed little emotion.
"I'm pleased with the verdict. I'm always impressed with how seriously jurors take their duties in these types of cases," Oswald said after the hearing.
She said the victims were "very courageous" for coming forward. "There has been testimony in this case as to why victims of sexual assault may not come forward for months, years or even decades. It's important for the justice system to accommodate the challenges of sexual assault victims in reporting this," Oswald said.
A pre-sentence investigation was ordered and sentencing was set for March 27th. Each of the four counts carries a maximum penalty of 40 years behind bars.
On The Web:
[url=http://www.wrn.com/gestalt/go.cfm?objectid=84D410BF-B936-0948-8DA5497DE64A5436]Irony: Legislature Considers Bill Lifting Statute of Limitation in Sexual Assault Cases[/url]
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