Press Releases
Dec 14, 2009 - HABITUAL OFFENDER FACES 204 YEARS IN PRISON FOLLOWING CHILD MOLESTATION CONVICTION
*** MEDIA ADVISORY***
December 14, 2009
HABITUAL OFFENDER FACES 204 YEARS IN PRISON
FOLLOWING CHILD MOLESTATION CONVICTION
Media Contact: Curtis T. Hill, Jr. - 296-1888
On Wednesday evening, December 9, 2009, after three hours of deliberation, an Elkhart County jury found Elkhart resident Michael Gregory, 44, guilty of six (6) counts of Child Molesting. Gregory admitted in court that he was a Habitual Criminal Offender, having previously been convicted of Armed Robbery, Possession of Cocaine and Theft.
Gregory, who had chosen to represent himself, questioned the young victims extensively regarding his parenting abilities. The victims acknowledged that Gregory put food on the table, put clothes on their backs, and rented videos for the weekends. While the children acknowledged that Gregory was a good provider, they described how he forced them to submit to various acts of child molestation, including fondling, sodomy, and cunnilingus. Through his questioning, Gregory attempted to explain that he was only checking the victims to ensure that they had not “wet the bed.”
In closing, Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys Susan Snyder and David Francisco argued that Gregory’s conduct was criminal. The children had been potty-trained for approximately six years. The State argued that Gregory did not need to actually touch and rub the children’s genitalia and breasts to confirm bed wetting. The State also argued that Gregory did not need to show the children what he described to them as a “funny movie,” but was in reality a pornographic video showing young individuals having sex. The jury agreed with the State.
Michael Gregory is scheduled to be sentenced Thursday, January 7, 2010, in the Elkhart Superior Court No. 3, and faces a maximum sentence of 204 years.
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