Sentencing Phase Begins In Former Officer's Trial
Posted: Thu Sep 25, 2003 10:22 am
How SICK can some people get?
From http://www.nbc5i.com:
FORT WORTH, Texas -- The sentencing phase in the sexual assault trial for a former Haltom City patrol officer begins Thursday.
Jurors deliberated 40 minutes Wednesday before convicting John Ross Ewing, 29, of three counts of sexually assaulting a child.
The victim, now 18 years old, says Ewing molested him while at a training camp for kids who want to become law enforcement officers.
Ewing faces 20 years in prison on each charge.
His teenage accuser took the stand Tuesday.
The victim described to jurors his relationship with Ewing.
"He said that no one would have to know, it would be a secret, just between me and him, that it was just an experiment, that it was perfectly normal, that no one else would know," he said.
Ewing was off duty when he assaulted the 16-year-old from April to August 2002 at his apartment, police said. He's also accused of molesting another teenager in the program last year.
The Haltom City Police Department's Explorer program was operated in conjunction with the Boy Scouts of America. The Police Department suspended the program last year.
Ewing's attorney says the officer did not assault the teenager. He says Ewing just exercised poor judgment by spending too much time with the boy.