In an era where justice often seems to be on vacation, a baffling ruling in Texas has shocked the nation, demanding our attention on the question of whether our legal system is truly upholding the punishment due for heinous acts of child abuse.
The American people are in a state of absolute disbelief following the far too lenient ruling of a Texas judge on a horrific case of child molestation. William Ira Wiltse, an 80-year-old man who shamelessly admitted to his heinous acts, confessed to a string of child sex crimes but was shockingly sentenced to a mere twenty days in prison, despite his monstrous abuse of a six-year-old girl in 2013.
Thanks to a plea deal that seemed to almost reward his repulsive actions, this Texas child molester was only given ten years of probation and this paltry twenty-day prison sentence — if he can stay on the straight and narrow through his probation, his record will remain untarnished.
In the same position, other child molesters could have been handed down a hefty 30-year prison term. Yet, this Texas judge from Wichita Falls displayed a concerning leniency on the 80-year-old sexual predator at last Friday’s sentencing. Despite his admission to the four sex crimes committed against the six-year-old victim, the judge seemingly failed to mete out the justice the offender deserved.
One could argue that this soft plea deal managed to skirt through the Texas legal system with such ease partly because the victim’s family didn’t wish for their traumatized child to endure the agony of testifying in court. This light sentencing spared the family from additional media scrutiny over the horrific crimes Wiltse committed against the little girl in multiple instances of sexual abuse.
The family of the victim had one clear demand: that Wiltse be registered as a sex offender as part of his plea deal. According to court documents cited by the Times Record, “Thirtieth District Judge Jeff McKnight sentenced Wiltse to 10 years of probation for two counts of indecency with a child by sexual contact and two counts of indecency with a child by exposure.”
The dreadful crimes against the innocent child unfolded around March 1, 2013. The little girl bravely confided in the police about how Wiltse would rouse her late at night when everyone else was asleep, subjecting her to unimaginable atrocities. The child described how he would usher her into the bathroom, locking the door behind them.
In her distress, she was commanded to undress completely as he engaged in a disturbing inspection of her body, paying unnerving attention to her private areas and crossing lines of decency with unwelcome touches on numerous occasions.
The abhorrent abuses reportedly took place about six months after Wiltse gained ownership of the property, as mentioned by the victim to the police. He abused his power and control over the premises to orchestrate access to the defenceless child and perpetrate his abuses behind closed doors, seemingly confident in his impunity. The judge’s lenient sentence might only serve to validate his belief.
During Wiltse’s sentencing, District Attorney of Wichita County, John Gillespie, mentioned to the judge that the victim’s family was advocating for the pedophile to be registered as a sex offender. The family also expressed their wish for the victim to be spared the ordeal of testifying against her tormentor. Gillespie added that the victim’s family had begrudgingly accepted the lenient punishment.
In addition to the meager twenty days in jail, Wiltse was also ordered to pay a fine of $2,000 and $1,965 in court costs. The court ordered him to relinquish any firearms due to his demonstrated propensity to exploit children for his deviant sexual purposes.
He is now forbidden to have any interaction with minors under eighteen unless he acquires prior written approval. As part of his sentence, the court also required the molester to complete 240 hours of community service. Moreover, he is expected to enroll in a sexual abuse treatment program.
Source: AWM