Montco man gets up to 70 years for rape of 6-year-old
A MONTGOMERY County man convicted of breaking into a Hatfield Township apartment and raping a 6-year-old girl while she slept in her bed was sentenced Thursday to 24 to 70 years in prison.
A MONTGOMERY County man convicted of breaking into a Hatfield Township apartment and raping a 6-year-old girl while she slept in her bed was sentenced Thursday to 24 to 70 years in prison.
In June, a Montgomery County Court jury found Oscar Herrera, 29, guilty of six of the seven charges against him - including rape and burglary.
"I know I made a mistake, and I need to pay for that," Herrera said before the sentencing, speaking through a translator. But, he said later, "I want to continue with my life because I have reason to live . . . my family, my son."
In a nearly 90-minute proceeding, during which the mother of Herrera's young son spoke of the man's "responsible" nature and his ability to be "a very good father," the parents of the victim sat in silence, her father wiping away tears.
Herrera's attorney, Brendan Campbell, argued to Judge Steven T. O'Neill that his client's behavior was akin to that of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," describing him as a responsible father to his own child at times, while still capable of raping a 6-year-old girl. Saying Herrera, who entered the country illegally, was under the influence of alcohol that night, Campbell maintained that people who struggle with addiction often live dual lives.
During the June trial, prosecutors said the girl was "living her worst nightmare" on that November 2015 night when Herrera broke into her apartment and raped her as her 11-year-old brother slept in the bunk bed above her. The boy awoke to alert his parents, and Herrera was arrested that night.
At trial, Campbell did not dispute that his client had broken into the apartment and climbed into the girl's bed. But, he argued at the time, what was in dispute was "what transpired during that short time he was in bed with her."
O'Neill said he could not "fathom a more egregious crime" than Herrera's."You raped a child, you will be punished. In this life, and the next."
After the sentencing, Assistant District Attorney Stewart Ryan said the victim was doing "as well as one might hope."
He added that it was unclear what will happen with Herrera's immigration status. It's likely, however, Ryan said, that Herrera would serve his time here and deal with his immigration issues afterward.
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