Perhaps the judge was not so convinced of his guilt as was the Jury?
The article doesn't say much about what evidence swayed the Jury that he was guilty. No DNA puts a lot of doubt in my mind. If things were as this girl claimed, it would seem they would have plenty of DNA.
From the article:
“...She told authorities where they could find DNA evidence at her home and said Richards had texted her about taking their relationship ‘to the next level.’
Authorities said they found her mattress stripped bare and his phone factory reset, but they were able to recover his DNA...”
Did you even read the article????
You're making excuses for this sexual predator just like those deluded parishioners.