A Virginia judge decided Wednesday that a 19-year-old man, who prosecutors say tied up and sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl on school property, will not serve any active prison time.
According to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Logan Osborn was sentenced in January by Chesterfield Circuit Judge T.J. Hauler to 10 years in prison with eight years suspended after pleading guilty to having carnal knowledge of the girl. The plea came with an agreement by prosecutors, who said they wouldn’t pursue a forcible sodomy indictment.
In January and again on Wednesday, the judge put the execution of the two-year term on pause, saying the guidelines of the case called for no incarceration, the Associated Press reports.
While Osborn’s attorney argued that it was consensual, prosecutor Erin Barr said the girl couldn’t legally consent to sex at the age of 14, adding that the girl’s parents were disappointed by Hauler’s decision of not imposing prison time.
Barr said Osborn sexually assaulted the adolescent girl after attending a play together at Cosby High School in April 2017, forcing himself on the victim while tying a belt around her hands and neck before making her perform a sex act.
Seeing that something seemed amiss with her daughter after the encounter, the girl’s mother questioned her about what went on, and the teen subsequently told her what Osborn did. Authorities were then called and the victim was taken for a forensics exam at a local hospital.
Osborne’s attorney reiterated that the encounter was consensual, citing a series of text messages between his client and the girl that “supports his version of the facts.” However, Virginia law states that individuals aged 17 or younger cannot legally consent to sexual activity.
[Feature Photo: Logan Osborn, Chesterfield County Sheriff’s Office]