Wednesday, September 26, 2001
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Wednesday, September 26, 2001 |
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Guilty verdict in molestation case By JOHN
MUNFORD
A Hampton man accused of inappropriately touching three girls at his former residence in Landmark Mobile Home Park claims he is innocent of the charges. Testifying before a local jury Tuesday morning, Curtis "Chris" Slaton said he did not touch any of the three alleged victims who claimed he did so while they spent the night with his stepdaughter. The girls, who were between the ages of 10 and 11 at the time, testified Monday that they were sleeping in the early morning hours when they awoke to find Slaton touching them in their private areas. The jury continued deliberating the case late Tuesday afternoon. Slaton faces two charges of child molestation and one count of sexual battery. He testified that he would enter his stepdaughter's bedroom occasionally to check on his vehicle because there had been some vandalism in the area. Each of the girls burst into tears while they were on the witness stand Monday. One of the girls claimed Slaton touched her inappropriately approximately 10 times before. One alleged victim said she kept coming back to spend the night because she didn't want to lose Slaton's stepdaughter as a friend. Slaton and his then-wife, who are now divorced, said they felt two of the victims had a "bad" character and they wouldn't believe their testimony. Pamela Hill also said she "couldn't remember" whether she told investigating officer Dave McNaughton of the Fayette County Sheriff's Department whether she believed the girls days after the incident. McNaughton testified that Hill said at the time that she believed the girls. Slaton said the accusations helped speed up the couple's divorce although they had talked about getting back together. In his closing argument, assistant District Attorney Tom Isom told the jury that the victims had nothing to gain by testifying, unlike witnesses for the defense. "All three victims got on the stand and very emotionally told you what happened to them," Isom said. "If you believe them, you have all the evidence you need to convict him." Slaton's former stepdaughter testified Monday, saying he wasn't present the night one of the victims claimed she was touched inappropriately. Later, however, Hill testified that Slaton came over around 3 a.m. and slept at the residence; she also said he was left alone with the children while she left the home to pick up her sister in Marietta later that morning. Slaton said he was asleep at the time and he didn't even know the victim had spent the night there. He said Hill woke him up when she returned from picking up her sister. Each of the victims said she was aware that lying in court could result in jail time and "getting in trouble." Slaton's attorney, Tarey Schell, used his closing remarks to point out inconsistencies in one of the victim's testimony. He said the girl claimed she went home immediately after waking up for the day while Hill, Slaton and Slaton's stepdaugher testified that the same girl helped them put boxes out for a family yard sale and helped put signs up for the sale. Schell said the other victims didn't come forward until after that girl did. He also pointed out that some of the victims admitted they spent the night with Slaton's stepdaughter several times after the alleged incidents.
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