Judge Dean Dankelson sentenced a Springfield man to 15 years on a child molestation charge Tuesday during a hearing in Jasper County Circuit Court.
Under a plea agreement with the Jasper County Prosecuting Attorney's office, Clarence Parks, Jr., 49, entered an Alford plea to the charges, meaning that he does not admit guilt, but acknowledges there would be enough evidence to convict him if the case went to trial.
As part of the agreement, the prosecution dismissed two counts of statutory sodomy against Parks.
The victim in the case was a girl who was under the age of 14, according to the plea agreement. The case was investigated by the Carthage Police Department. The crimes occurred in 2015, according to court records.
Parks will serve his sentence concurrently with a 7-year sentence handed down in 2022 in Christian County for child abuse.
3 comments:
Alright - Final Justice for the Victims - Stop being soft on Criminals.
I don't think any child molester should ever get a plea bargain.
@3:44 never giving a plea bargain on these cases means re-traumatizing a child over and over and over again throughout the judicial process. Plea bargains help children heal and bring closure.
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