SPARTANBURG COUNTY, SC (FOX Carolina) – A man has admitted to serious charges related to the sexual abuse of a child and also pleaded guilty to a lesser charge as part of his negotiated deal and will not spend any time behind bars.
During the court hearing on Friday, it was revealed that the charges stem from incidents that began when the victim was nine years old.
The victim said the suspect, Jeremy O’dell, touched her inappropriately on multiple occasions over a two-year period between 2013 and 2015.
O’dell was in his 30s at the time of the abuse. According to the victim, O’dell got into her bed and touched her inappropriately over her clothing. She said O’dell once forced her to touch him back and once he touched her over her clothing.
The victim, now an adult, did not appear in court because she did not want to see O’dell. The prosecutor said she now suffers from PTSD and anxiety, but her statement was read aloud:
“To Jeremy, I hope forgiveness finds its way to you and me, because even though part of my life was ruined by what you did, it never occurred to me to ruin part of yours. My love for you was childlike, innocent, gullible. I hold no hatred for you in my heart, as I only remember you as you were in my youthful years. I never knew you when I truly matured, when my heart became less soft. That alone is comfort to me, for I don’t have to go on with my life feeling angry about what you did to me, only disappointed. I hope you have sat alone many nights like me, searching for answers your brain will never understand, the whys or wherefores. I hope you make better choices in this life and the next.”
A judge asked O’Dell if he agreed with the victim’s account of events in court, and he said he did.
O’dell was charged with four counts of third-degree sexual abuse of a minor and one count of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor, the latter charge later dropped.
He pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of first-degree assault.
O’Dell may have to register as a sex offender. A judge also said he must undergo a psychosexual evaluation within the next 90 days.
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