Thursday, March 11, 1999
Court hears accounts of sex abuse of children
BY WALT SCHAEFER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
BATAVIA — Written accounts of parental sexual abuse described by a little girl highlighted testimony in the trial Wednesday of the girl's 34-year-old mother.
The testimony came during the second day of the rape and felonious assault case before Clermont County Common Pleas Judge William Walker. It will resume today at 9:30 a.m.
The girl's recollection of the abuse as told to a case worker was included in records read to the court by Brook Lorthioir, a case investigator for the county's Children's Protective Services.
In the account, the girl described watching her mother help hold down her older sister while her father sexually assaulted her. The records described how both girls suffered abuse at the hands of their parents and others.
The charges against the Bethel woman, filed in 1997, stem from incidents that allegedly occurred in 1993 and 1994. Ms. Lorthioir told the court investigation records indicate the parents permitted sexual encounters with 22 “other perpetrators.” Officials have said those include the girls' fathers, family friends and neighbors in the Bethel and Felicity area. At the time of the incidents, the girls were 6 and 11.
The Enquirer is not naming the defendant or the other parents to protect the children's identities. The younger girl's father committed suicide in 1997 after being questioned about molesting his stepdaughter and daughter. The father of the older girl has been convicted of raping her and is in prison.
Mr. Breyer said the rape charges involve both girls while felonious assault charges have been filed for psychological suffering by the woman's four children, including two sons.
One of the girls and a brother are in area hospitals under psychiatric care. A another brother and the younger girl are in foster care.
Much of Wednesday's testimony involved reading records of a chaotic and dysfunctional home environment, drug and alcohol abuse, neglect, missed appointments with doctors and social workers, and financial issues.
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