Hearing Pushed Back in Child Sex Abuse Case

By Graham Krewinghaus [former] - November 8, 2022
Court | Daily Stories | Juveniles | Sex Abuse | Sexual Assault | Suspects | Victims |

DC Superior Court Judge Milton Lee delayed a preliminary hearing on Nov. 7 for a sex abuse defendant to allow counsel more time to prepare.

The defendant, 35, is charged with three counts of first-degree sex abuse in connection with several reported incidents between January and August of 2021 and one sometime between 2016 and 2018. The victims were around six or seven years old when these incidents happened, according to court documents, and were the children of two of his cousins.

The charges were brought against the defendant on Nov. 4, during a day of presentments that defense attorney Jesse Winograd noted went until 8 p.m.

With Monday’s hearing being the next business day, Winograd said the defense was “not prepared to go forward with the preliminary [hearing] at this time.”

The parties agreed upon a preliminary hearing date of Dec. 15, even though Judge Lee said he may have to ask another judge to hear the case on his behalf because he anticipated being in another trial that week.

The three children disclosed to social workers that the defendant had touched them inappropriately and repeatedly: one child reported the defendant “sexually touched her and ejaculated in her mouth” in August 2021. All three described the defendant frequently touching them or making them touch each other over a long period of time. The children said the abuse would occur whenever he was asked to babysit them.

One of the victims also reported having seen pornographic videos of the defendant with all three of the children on his phone. She told police that once, she went through the defendant’s phone and got him to delete a video of them by almost sending it to her mother and father.

The parties are scheduled to reconvene on Dec. 15 for the preliminary hearing.