I was alerted to this by a friendly reader, who rightfully questioned the amount of time given to this disgrace to society. It hails in from Washington, and truly is disturbing. When looking a bit more into this case, I found that "Authorities declined to comment on court documents that suggest Welty is a suspect in another "very similar" case involving a 16- year-old girl who had sex in a house in northwest Spokane with a man who resembled Welty and drove a similar vehicle." Three years doesn't seem to be fitting. He continued a sexual relationship with a child for two years- he only spends one extra year in jail. And looking at the fact that he had sex with the minor 6 to 10 times- one should question what happened to all the other charges of child rape seeing as he is only being held responsible for two. Looking at the fact that he possibly could be suspect in another case- the sentence seems extremely- kind.
The reader who sent the story over to me commented that he wondered what the sentence would have been in other states. I would like to say that my home state would have gladly sent him up the creek to the big house for the remainder of his life. But honestly I doubt Ohio would have.
Let's face it, the government spends millions on "educational" programs; billions on tax abatements, road work, housing, welfare, pensions, Nasa, and the like. And yet we constantly here them kindly explain that the cost of housing these predators for life is to large a financial burden to make sense. At what point will the Government realize that the victims of these pedophiles and sexual offenders are one day going to grow up. How are they planning to explain to the Nations future leaders, teachers, doctors, writers, McDonald's Managers, labors, sales clerks- that keeping them safe as children just didn't make good monetary sense? How do you tell a child that we could have prevented the abuse they suffered but we didn't want to shell out the extra money? We'll send millions in aid to a country most of couldn't find on a map- but we won't protect our own children.
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Corrections officer gets 34 months for rape
Man met 13-year-old girl online, continued relationship two years
John CraigStaff writer
September 24, 2005
A former corrections officer will be on the other side of prison bars for the next three years.
Richard Leon Welty, 36, was sentenced Friday to 34 months in prison for having sex with a teenage girl over a two-year period, starting when she was 13.
Welty, who worked at the Airway Heights Corrections Center, met the Spokane-area girl in August 2002 through an Internet chat room. He told her his name was Chad and that he was 24 years old. She told him she was 13, and he arranged to meet her and have sex in the woods near Elk in northern Spokane County.
They had sex six to 10 times, often in Welty's sport utility vehicle, until the girl was 15. On one occasion when the victim was 15, Welty had sex with her in front of her 11-year-old sister and 12-year-old friend of theirs. The 12-year-old said Welty kissed her on the lips, gave her a "full body massage" and groped her sexually.
The incident occurred in a house in northwest Spokane, possibly in the 5000 block of North Adams, where Welty took the girls and gave them wine coolers and other alcoholic drinks. Welty pleaded guilty last month to two counts of third-degree child rape. One of the counts was reduced from second-degree child rape, shaving about seven years off Welty's potential sentence. His standard sentencing range was 26 to 34 months, and Welty agreed to accept Court documents indicate detectives suspected Welty in a "very similar" case, but Deputy Prosecutor Ed Hay said Welty 's plea agreement precludes charges in that incident. The uncharged case involves a 16-year-old girl who said she had sex in a house in northwest Spokane with a man who resembled Welty and drove a similar vehicle.Welty thanked the victim 's mother Friday for the complaint that led to his arrest, claiming he has had a religious experience that changed his life. He also thanked Spokane County Superior Court Judge Linda Tompkins for giving him the maximum-standard sentence called for in his plea bargain.
The victim 's mother told police in August 2002 that her older daughter was having an improper relationship with someone named Chad, and she made a second report in February 2004 after discovering the relationship had persisted. She heard numerous phone messages left by "Chad" and gave detectives a pager number that was traced to Welty. Welty was arrested on Jan. 2 of this year after the victim identified him in a photo montage."
The children involved in this case will forever have to live with it. One day a young girl will realize that she fooled and taken advantage of. She will realize that the state has put a price on her innocence- and decided she was worth three years. Tell me, is that justice? Her pain, her suffering, her shame- she'll have it for a lifetime. He'll pay three short years for it.
The reader who sent the story over to me commented that he wondered what the sentence would have been in other states. I would like to say that my home state would have gladly sent him up the creek to the big house for the remainder of his life. But honestly I doubt Ohio would have.
Let's face it, the government spends millions on "educational" programs; billions on tax abatements, road work, housing, welfare, pensions, Nasa, and the like. And yet we constantly here them kindly explain that the cost of housing these predators for life is to large a financial burden to make sense. At what point will the Government realize that the victims of these pedophiles and sexual offenders are one day going to grow up. How are they planning to explain to the Nations future leaders, teachers, doctors, writers, McDonald's Managers, labors, sales clerks- that keeping them safe as children just didn't make good monetary sense? How do you tell a child that we could have prevented the abuse they suffered but we didn't want to shell out the extra money? We'll send millions in aid to a country most of couldn't find on a map- but we won't protect our own children.
Source here (subscription required) or go here for free
Corrections officer gets 34 months for rape
Man met 13-year-old girl online, continued relationship two years
John CraigStaff writer
September 24, 2005
A former corrections officer will be on the other side of prison bars for the next three years.
Richard Leon Welty, 36, was sentenced Friday to 34 months in prison for having sex with a teenage girl over a two-year period, starting when she was 13.
Welty, who worked at the Airway Heights Corrections Center, met the Spokane-area girl in August 2002 through an Internet chat room. He told her his name was Chad and that he was 24 years old. She told him she was 13, and he arranged to meet her and have sex in the woods near Elk in northern Spokane County.
They had sex six to 10 times, often in Welty's sport utility vehicle, until the girl was 15. On one occasion when the victim was 15, Welty had sex with her in front of her 11-year-old sister and 12-year-old friend of theirs. The 12-year-old said Welty kissed her on the lips, gave her a "full body massage" and groped her sexually.
The incident occurred in a house in northwest Spokane, possibly in the 5000 block of North Adams, where Welty took the girls and gave them wine coolers and other alcoholic drinks. Welty pleaded guilty last month to two counts of third-degree child rape. One of the counts was reduced from second-degree child rape, shaving about seven years off Welty's potential sentence. His standard sentencing range was 26 to 34 months, and Welty agreed to accept Court documents indicate detectives suspected Welty in a "very similar" case, but Deputy Prosecutor Ed Hay said Welty 's plea agreement precludes charges in that incident. The uncharged case involves a 16-year-old girl who said she had sex in a house in northwest Spokane with a man who resembled Welty and drove a similar vehicle.Welty thanked the victim 's mother Friday for the complaint that led to his arrest, claiming he has had a religious experience that changed his life. He also thanked Spokane County Superior Court Judge Linda Tompkins for giving him the maximum-standard sentence called for in his plea bargain.
The victim 's mother told police in August 2002 that her older daughter was having an improper relationship with someone named Chad, and she made a second report in February 2004 after discovering the relationship had persisted. She heard numerous phone messages left by "Chad" and gave detectives a pager number that was traced to Welty. Welty was arrested on Jan. 2 of this year after the victim identified him in a photo montage."
The children involved in this case will forever have to live with it. One day a young girl will realize that she fooled and taken advantage of. She will realize that the state has put a price on her innocence- and decided she was worth three years. Tell me, is that justice? Her pain, her suffering, her shame- she'll have it for a lifetime. He'll pay three short years for it.
Comments
Jailhouse religious conversions are meaningless. This freak will still be sexually attracted to children for the rest of his life. The children will live with these crimes for the rest of their lives, but that's only the half of it. Somebody's child is now destined to be this freak's next victim. After his 2 years in prison, will he now simply kill his victims while they're out there in the woods in his SUV? What will the lazy prosecutor say to the next victims if they survive?
Just the facts.