Posted on 06/16/2004 9:25:09 AM PDT by NYer
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) _ A father was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison Wednesday for raping his 11-year-old daughter, who later hung herself.
Timothy Lucie, 46, stood stoically as Onondaga County Judge William Walsh imposed back-to-back sentences of 25 years to life for his conviction on first-degree rape and first-degree sodomy charges. Lucie said nothing before Walsh sentenced him. His wife, Andrea Lucie, hurried from the courtroom in tears, refusing to talk to reporters. She testified in her husband's defense.
``In all my years on this planet, I've never been at a loss for words. Today, I am,'' Walsh said. ``My sentence will have to speak for me.'' Walsh said he would recommend that Lucie serve his sentence at the Clinton Correctional Facility, in a special program that isolates inmates who may be at risk from other prisoners because of the crimes they committed.
Lucie was convicted last month following an eight-day trial. He also was convicted of endangering the welfare of a child. He has appealed his conviction. Lucie was accused of sexually assaulting his daughter, Valerie, in the shower at their Syracuse home Sept. 30. Hours later her 8-year-old brother found her hanging from her bedpost by a dog collar and leash in what police said was an apparent suicide.
A furniture business owner, Lucie confessed to the rape after a six-hour interrogation on Oct. 13. He then recanted as police prepared to put the confession on videotape. Lucie claimed his confession was coerced by police, who he said threatened to arrest his wife and take away his four younger sons if he didn't admit to the sexual attack. Defense attorney Ken Moynihan had little to say, other than objecting to prosecutors' characterization that Lucie was not remorseful about this daughter's death.
Moynihan said Lucie ``deeply misses'' his daughter, but prosecutors never gave him the chance to properly grieve because they immediately made him the subject of a criminal investigation. Chief Assistant District Attorney Christine Garvey asked Walsh to give Lucie 50 years in prison, saying he ``deserved every second in state prison that this court can sentence him to.''
Garvey said there is typically a time at sentencing when family members are allowed to speak on behalf of the victim. ``But there is no one from Valerie Lucie's family to be that child's voice. It is truly sad. An 11-year-old is dead and she doesn't have anybody from her family _ not her aunts or her uncles, or her grandparents, to say what a wonderful child she was, how she was loved and how she will be missed,'' Garvey said.
Instead, Garvey read a short letter composed by Leslie Plucknette, Valerie's former third-grade teacher at Fairbanks Road Elementary School in the Churchville-Chili School District near Rochester. Plucknette sat through the entire trial and was in her usual second-row seat for Wednesday's sentencing. Plucknette's letter described Valerie as an engaging, excitable child, ``a petite, little girl with a smile as wide as her braids were long.'' Plucknette said Valerie ``sang with the voice of an angel,'' and was the star of her third-grade class' performance of ``Charlotte's Web.''
After court, Plucknette stood in the hallway, showing off a photograph of Valerie at a party with some friends. ``If he stays in jail for 50 years, that would be justice,'' she said.
Several jurors also attended the sentencing. Foreman Michael Spado said he, too, was there for Valerie. ``That poor little girl only had 11 years. Fifty years is a satisfactory sentence but it can't bring Valerie back,'' Spado said. Spado said the jury was not allowed to consider Valerie's death as it deliberated the case. However, Spado said he personally held Lucie responsible for Valerie's death.
AP-ES-06-16-04 1209EDT
He may still indeed get capital punishment while in prison.
Jesus has a rocking chair, and He holds those precious babies with oh such tender care!!!!
"If he coerced her into performing oral sex,that would still be rape.Hence the rape and sodomy charge."
Why do we have the different charges? If he coerced her into oral sex, I agree that it would be sexual abuse, but I am confused as to why we would have different charges for the abuse. In my opinion, rape is rape and any unwanted sexual activity qualifies. I might be missing something though......
Believe me, I'm not purposefully being difficult, I'm just not all that familiar with these types of cases.....
I truly don't know how the arresting officer didn't shoot this guy dead where he stands.
For all of you who are questioning the evidence, I would like to say, I have no doubt there is more evidence than what was mentioned here. Unfortunately, this article is woefully incomplete and makes more questions to be asked than was answered. 50 years in prison is a long time, but does not in my estimation, serve this young girl justice. True, there is nothing we could ever do to bring little Valerie back, but we can make sure this evil and disgusting man does not do this to anyone else's children, or to his own. I don't believe this particular incident is the only one with this man and his daughter, it is just the only one he was caught.
Now a word for the mother in this case. You insensitive, heartless twit!!! How could you let this trial go by without so much as uttering a word for your daughter!!!! As much as I hate to say it, this is one case where I believe the child is better off dead than at home with you and your husband. There are no words in spoken or written language anywhere to adequately describe yours and your husband's actions.
May God have mercy on both your souls, because I WILL NOT!!
Different charges for different sentencing.As in,25 years for rape and 25 for sodomy.States have laws against sodomy.
Hmm.I did some checking and apparantly New York repealed the sodomy law in 2000.Wonder why they didn't change the charges to reflect this.Maybe just another mistake via the reporters.
http://www.prideagenda.org/pressreleases/pr-sodomyrepealbg.html
Eve-rrrr-ything will come ri-i-ght
If you only believe
The gypsy
She could tell at a glance
That my heart was so f-u-u-ll of tears...
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