[Texas:]Beeville man sentenced to 317 years in prison

Bee-Picayune ^ | 8/22/2009 | Scott Reese Willey

[SwinneySwitch]

A 27-year-old Beeville man accused of plying middle school girls with drugs and alcohol and then having sex with them was sentenced Thursday to 317 years in prison.

The five-man, seven-woman jury deliberated for about 30 minutes Thursday morning before finding Joe Richard Jasso guilty on all six counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child, each count a first degree felony offense punishable by up to 99 years or life in prison and a $10,000 fine.

The jury also convicted Jasso of one count of sexual assault, a second degree felony offense punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

District Court Judge Janna Whatley ordered Jasso to serve four of the life sentences concurrently — at the same time. After he has served that sentence, he is to serve his 20-year sentence. After that sentence, he is to serve another life sentence and once that sentence is served he will have to serve his sixth life sentence.

Jasso showed no emotion when he heard his fate but did tell Whatley he would appeal the six verdicts.

Jasso pleaded guilty to the count of sexual assault of a child. Prosecutors said Jasso had sex with a 15-year-old girl. Because of her age he was only charged with a second degree felony.

Jasso denied having sex with 14- and 13-year-old girls. Because they were not over 14 years old he was charged with aggravated sexual assault.

The girls testified that Jasso gave them alcohol and marijuana before having sex with them in 2004.

District Attorney Martha Warner, who prosecuted the case on behalf of the state, said the girls only came forward when one of them found out that Jasso had returned to Beeville.

Another girl came forward after hearing that Jasso had been indicted for having sex with the other middle school student, Warner said.

“Mr. Jasso preyed on young girls who were on the verge of dropping out of school, who lacked self-esteem, who thought he loved them,” Warner told jurors. “You don’t want this kind of predator in our community. You need to send a message to others like him that we will not tolerate 22-year-old men giving 13- and 14-year-old girls alcohol and marijuana and then having sex with them.”

The girls testified they were terrified of Jasso because of all his scary tattoos, some of them pictures of skulls and other pagan symbols, and because he had threatened to kill them and their families if they told anyone about his involvement with them.

Jasso admitted he gave the girls booze and marijuana but denied he threatened the girls or their families.

“They’re damn liars,” he told the jurors during the sentencing portion of the trial on Thursday. “I don’t know why they brought that crap in here.”

Warner told jurors there was no reason for the girls, who were unrelated, to make up the stories against Jasso.

She asked Jasso if he could explain how it is that all the girls had similar stories to tell about his sexual advances.

Jasso said Beeville is a small community and that perhaps the girls conspired against him. He did not elaborate.

Jasso’s attorney, John Tinder, told jurors that the girls’ testimony contained many inconsistencies and improbabilities.

For instance, he said, one of the girls testified she performed oral sex on Jasso but was unaware he had only one testicle.

And one of the girls testified that Jasso came over to her home in the Capehart subdivision every morning for a month and had sex with her.

Tinder reminded the jury that an adult caregiver who came over to the house daily testified she never saw Jasso at the home in the morning hours. And, Tinder told the jury, how was it that Jasso could have sex with the girl in the home and the girl’s parents be unaware.v

[SwinneySwitch]

Hell in a handbasket!

[Signalman]

317 years!
Even David Copperfield couldn’t pull that off.

[Vaquero]

WOW talk about freudian slips...

that was suppose to read CUT......

[driftdiver]

So why was he giving them alcohol and drugs if he wasn’t trying to get in their pants? Sounds like the right verdict to me.

[garyhope]

When will he be eligible for parole? How old will he be when he gets out? How much will it cost to keep him in prison for 317 years? Will he have good health care in his latter years?

[Hodar]

Hmmm, no physical evidence that he touched any of them. Inconsistent stories.
Just the good word of some girls is enough to put a man away for 300+ years?!?

No collorabating medical evidence, no pictures, no witnesses - the girls didn't say anything until he came back into town. Seems that IF something happened, it was not forced - but we don't have any evidence that anything did happen.

What is wrong with Texas?

[HiTech RedNeck]

Did evidence of any of these trysts (liquor, drugs, or sex) go beyond the girls’ word?

I can imagine the return of this fellow totally creeping out a group of teens who thought he was gone.

Many of the charges in the Salem witch trials came from bored young girls.

IF the story was made up, I hope incontrovertible evidence to that fact surfaces soon and that... well, that justice is done. Which includes the fate of the girls.

[jongaltsr]

- and a woman doing the same thing would get fired from her position at best.

[HiTech RedNeck]

I would imagine the plea was done to avoid getting the death penalty.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Man indicted on 15 counts of sexual contact with young girls

A 25-year-old Beeville man faces a possible lifetime in prison if he is convicted of any of the first degree felonies listed in a 15-count indictment returned against him last Thursday.

Six of 15 indictments returned by the Bee County Grand Jury were first degree felonies punishable by from five to 99 years or life in prison and a fine of $10,000.

The defendant, Joe Richard Jasso, is already in custody at the Bee County Jail awaiting trial on several sexual assault and indecency charges related to the same victims.

According to investigators with the Bee County Sheriff’s Office, Jasso is suspected of having sexual relations with at least three young girls in May 2004. The indictment indicates that one of the victims was under the age of six, one was under the age of 14 and another was younger than 17.

The six first degree felony counts were all on charges of aggravated sexual assault. Jasso also was indicted on four counts of indecency with a child, contact, and on four counts of sexual assault. All eight of those counts were second degree felonies.

If Jasso is convicted on those, each conviction could result in his being sentenced to as many as 20 years in prison and fined as much as $10,000.

Grand jurors also indicted Jasso on one count of indecency with a child, contact, a third degree felony. If convicted on that count, the defendant could be sentenced to 10 years in prison and fined $10,000.

District Judge M.E. “Mike” Welborn set bond on the defendant at $5,000. Jasso is already being held on even higher bonds on other charges and it is unlikely he will be released.

Others indicted by grand jurors Thursday included:

•Jose Garza in a two-count indictment on charges of prohibited sexual conduct, a second degree felony, and sexual assault enhanced to a punishment of from 15-99 years or life in prison.

The first count of the indictment alleged that Garza engaged in deviate sexual intercourse with a female victim and the second count alleged that he had sexual intercourse with the same victim.

Beeville Police Department investigators claimed the offenses took place on May 6, 2007.

The punishment range in the second count of the indictment was enhanced because the defendant had a previous felony conviction on a charge of burglary of a vehicle in San Patricio County on May 24, 1991.

Bond was $20,000.

•Jacob Blanco in a two-count indictment on charges of possession of a controlled substance in a correctional facility, both third degree felonies.

Beeville police filed the charges after finding that Blanco had marijuana and diazepam while in the Bee County Jail on Jan. 3.

Bond was $2,000.

[Hodar]

So why was he giving them alcohol and drugs if he wasn’t trying to get in their pants? Sounds like the right verdict to me.

Any evidence to go with that verdict, pardner? No, just the word of some teenage girls. Why, we all know that teenage girls NEVER ever lie. Who needs something as archaic as physical evidence?

I'm glad that you are willing to accept a verdict based upon the word of a group of girls; excuse me if I am a little bit more picky and want some sort of evidenct that ANYTHING happened at all. You know, a witness, a picture, a fingerprint, consistent stories.

But, I'm just a racist for asking questions.

[driftdiver]

“Seems that IF something happened, it was not forced - but we don’t have any evidence that anything did happen.”

he admitted to giving them the booze and drugs.

A man of his age cannot have legal sex with a girl under 14 years of age. She is under the age of consent so its automatically considered rape.

[driftdiver]

so is it just girls that you dont trust? Would you believe them if they were boys?

‘girls’ isnt a race.

[driftdiver]

Here’s an idea, if you are 23 years old do not hang around a bunch of 14 year old girls plying them with booze and drugs.

sooner or later something bad is gonna happen.

[Hodar]

he admitted to giving them the booze and drugs

And 300+ years is the punishment for providing minors booze and drugs? Murderers do not get this, Bernie Madoff didn't get this .

There is NO PROOF, no evidence that he had sex with any of the girls - other than the word of some teenage girls. And the word of some teenage girls got this man sentenced to 300+ years

Do you not remember the same sort of travesty when daycare providers were accused by children of sticking swords through their heads, having sex with them, killing and eating them - those innocent men and women were sent to jail without an ounce of evidence; just like this man. And you think this is just????

[WayneS]

“They’re damn liars,” he told the jurors during the sentencing portion of the trial on Thursday. “I don’t know why they brought that crap in here.”

Well, at least he availed himself of his opportunity to rationally respectfully and eloquently state his side of the story to the jury.

[Admin Moderator]

3 deleted. You owe us one. :-)

[WayneS]

Yeah, sure!

;^)

[WayneS]

You obviously did not proof-read to the “Nth” degree before posting.