MARION COUNTY, Oregon — On Tuesday, a Marion County man was found guilty on child sexual abuse charges and was sentenced to over 62 years by Marion County Circuit Court Judge Courtland Geyer, according to the Marion County Attorney's Office.
Charles Thomas Dougherty was convicted of seven separate incidents of child sexual abuse. The abuse against the victim started when the child was under the age of 12 and carried on until she was 16, said the Marion County Attorney's Office.
Doughtery opted for a bench trail, a trial without a jury leaving the judge to determine not only the facts of the case but also deciding what law applies to the case. In Oregon, a criminal defendant has the right to decide if they want to proceed with a bench or jury trial.
During the trial, two of the charges were dropped by the state, since the victim was no longer able to speak on discreet and detailed moments of abuse in relation to the specific charge, according to the Marion County Attorney's Office.
Oregon law requires that the victim(s) testify in open court regarding specific instances of sexual assault. If a victim is unable to testify, the state cannot do more than prove a specific charge beyond a reasonable doubt, and a defendant is found not guilty of that behavior.
The Marion County Attorney's Office also said that Doughtery took no accountability and showed no remorse. He asked the court to “just give me the 25 years so I can move on with my life," since most of the counts he was convicted of hold a mandatory-minimum 25 years prison sentence.
Doughtery was sentenced 37 years longer than the mandatory minimum.
Deputy District Attorney Semple stated that “The sentence handed down by the Court holds the defendant accountable for the years of torment he subjected the child to, both physical and psychological.”
At sentencing, Judge Geyer also addressed the now-adult victim, saying: “This can never be said enough: This was not your fault.”
