Baby Raped: Will Justice Be Served?

The Seattle Times ^ | 12-15-03 | Nicole Brodeur

[sherim]

Tuesday, December 16, 2003 - Page updated at 12:00 A.M.

Nicole Brodeur / Times staff columnist Baby raped: Will justice be served?

The lights are up, the Christmas Ships are out, but dark things churn in the waters this season.

On Sunday, this newspaper unveiled a yearlong investigation that found that 159 school athletic coaches have been reprimanded or fired for sexual misconduct in the past decade. Of those, 98 continued to coach or teach, while schools, the state and even some parents looked the other way.

I hope no one looks the other way in the case of another predator.

Last month, Joseph Lehman Jr., 38, pleaded guilty to raping his girlfriend's 2-month-old daughter last December. Because of his plea, the state's standard, seven- to 10-year penalty likely will be suspended when Lehman is sentenced Friday at the King County Regional Justice Center.

Instead, Lehman may receive just six months of jail time, three years of treatment for sexual deviancy and a lifetime of supervision. A court psychologist has deemed him "amenable to treatment."

Court officials stress that this improbably light sentence has nothing to do with the fact that Lehman's father, Joseph Lehman Sr., heads the Washington State Department of Corrections.

Roxanne Crowder wonders.

She is the mother of Lehman's victim (she says the baby is his, making the unthinkable even worse) and the one who walked in on Lehman that day. Crowder has held nothing back about Lehman — or about her worry that he will get special treatment. That has meant naming her baby and describing her abuse on radio and television and to me.

"I will do whatever I have to do to ensure that another child is not hurt by him," Crowder said. "He already robbed my daughter of some of her innocence. I am not going to let that happen to another child."

She asserts that Lehman is manipulative and that his family hasn't acknowledged that what their son did was wrong.

"I agree Joe needs counseling," she said. "But he needs counseling in prison."

On that day, Crowder was resting at their Auburn apartment when Lehman went to change the baby's diaper. Crowder heard the baby screaming, went to investigate and saw what she can't forget.

It took her three weeks to call police.

"I will always feel guilty that I didn't break up with him or kick him out for all that time," she said. "I just couldn't process it. It's almost like a movie you saw."

A year later, the baby still wakes up screaming and pushes her mother away. Crowder has to turn on a light so the baby will know it's her.

The whole thing makes me sad, for someday it will be too easy for this baby-turned-woman to connect the dots.

I hope then that she sees her mother's crusade as The Right Thing to Do, especially in a society where schools and churches turn their heads, witnesses clam up and judges go easy, not realizing that in doing so, they create more victims.

That could change Friday. One man sentenced, a baby's purity somehow restored and unknown others spared.

And if that doesn't happen?

Crowder sighed: "I take some relief knowing he will have to face God someday."

Nicole Brodeur's column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Reach her at 206-464-2334 or nbrodeur@s....

More columns at www.seattletimes.com/columnists. Save her a seat in the courtroom.

Copyright © 2003 The Seattle Times Company

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[sherim]

If you find the above news disturbing I would encourage you to flood the judge with letters and e-mails between now and Friday, the day of sentencing 12/19/03. The info is as follows: Judge Ronald Kessler Regional Justice Center 401 4th Ave. N., Room 2D Kent, WA 98032 Fax # 206.205.2585 E-Mail-(not as good)ronald.kessler@metrokc.gov Also, the link to the on-line petition against this creature is at: http://www.gopetition.com/online/3140.html Time is running out and we need to keep this animal caged so he does not have the opportunity to do this to another child. Thank You, Happy Holidays and God Bless, Sheri Miller (Author of petition and mother of 3)

[wizardoz]

It took her three weeks to call police.

???????????????!!!!!

[Bikers4Bush]

This guy shouldn't be going to prison, he should be going to the morgue in more than one bag.

[hopespringseternal]

It took her three weeks to call police.

...

Crowder sighed: "I take some relief knowing he will have to face God someday."

So will you.

[newgeezer]

There are no words. But, there is a special place.

[keri]

I agree with you. He should die, and the mother ought to be put in prison and there receive what she recommends for her demon boyfriend: counseling.

I hope she never has another baby, or boyfriend.

[Halls]

This is sick!!!!!!!!!

[Bikers4Bush]

I couldn't agree more.

[r9etb]

A year later, the baby still wakes up screaming and pushes her mother away. Crowder has to turn on a light so the baby will know it's her.

Good Lord. This tells me it happened more than once. Poor little kid.

[eastforker]

Let me get this straight. The mother walks in and sees the baby's father raping the child and it takes her three weeks to turn him in. So all we have is her testimony, when she could have immediately taken the baby to the hospital,verify it,collect forensic evidence etc. How do we know she didn't fabricate the whole story. If the story is true she is as guilty as he is.

[Dante3]

This is an outrage. Something is dreadfully wrong with the system if he and that mother from hell get away with a slap on the writs such as Amy Grossberg and her lover boy got.

[Politicalmom]

I would have killed him. DEAD. On the spot.

[MHGinTN]

They would still be searching for his body, if that happened in my home!

What amazes me daily is the ability to disconnect truth the way liberals do ... a 2 months old baby is cherished, a two months prior to birth baby is discardable. Astonishing disconnect, don'tcha know!

[MD_Willington_1976]

This guy shouldn't be going to prison, he should be going to the morgue in more than one bag.

I agree. That piece of excrement should be tied to a whipping post outside the courthouse so that anyone passing by could have a fair shot at him. Then after about a day of whipping, put one in his head and send the body to the rendering plant.

[Cicero]

Well, OK, I'll say a few words on behalf of the mother. She seems to have been a normally sinful woman, far enough into evil to have an affair and a baby with a pathological man, and not to realize it.

But I will say in her behalf that she may have been so deeply shocked by what she suddenly saw, and also so shamed and guilty for her own up to then unwitting part in bringing this terrible thing about, that it took her a week to recover and do the right thing.

No, she's certainly not innocent, but I wouldn't downplay the horrible shock she must have gotten at that devastating moment, and maybe the time it took for her to sort it out and come to grips with it. I'd leave her to heaven. The boyfriend should get the chair, but of course that's not possible in our present rotten judicial system.

[Bikers4Bush]

"Last month, Joseph Lehman Jr., 38, pleaded guilty to raping his girlfriend's 2-month-old daughter last December."

This is how we know she didn't just make it all up.

[eastforker]

Notice Crowder says she describes her abuse as well on the air waves. The fact the perp pleaded guilty to lessen the punishment could also mean one of two things, he didn't have money to fight it or he thought a jury would convict him anyway. Without any concrete evidence other than the mothers testimony I can't imagine him not going to trial. There is IMHO more to this story than is being told. If the guy did it fry him,thats a given,but something don't smell right about this story.

[mamaduck]

six months of jail time, three years of treatment for sexual deviancy and a lifetime of supervision.

Just think of all the jobs created by these tactics.

Filth like this should be put out of this world and into the place it belongs!

[cubreporter]

No, no, no, no, no. I don't agree with that at all. Most mothers would have reacted to protect their child. Real mothers would have. Sorry, doesn't cut it with me nor others I would imagine by reading the posts.

[CajunConservative]

Um, don't you think they did a physical examination of the baby before charges were brought? Why would any man willingly admit guilt to this knowing what happens to them in prison?

[jwalsh07]

Death by hanging.

[Pontiac]

So all we have is her testimony, when she could have immediately taken the baby to the hospital,verify it,collect forensic evidence etc. How do we know she didn't fabricate the whole story.

The man raped a two month old child. The damage he did to a two month old vagina is more than like likely permanent and most certainly would still be evident after three weeks.

[eastforker]

Read my post 18.Not everyone that accepts a plea bargain is necessarily guilty. Has it occurred to you that he might just think probation is better than 6-10 years if found guilty? I have never reasoned why plea bargains give such lighter punishment over a jury conviction. It just makes it too convenient to cop a plea and walk rather than prove a case and incarcerate the guy.

[headsonpikes]

Just think of all the jobs...

That's what it's all about - the scavengers have to eat, too.

Not everyone can be a parasite - the gubmint needs to provide opportunities for scavengers and predators, as well.

It's called Ecological Management.

[eastforker]

The article says it took her three weeks to call police.Not much evidence left after that amount of time.

[Diamond]

I'm not sure I would believe my eyes if I saw my husband do something like that

The key word there is HUSBAND.

Cordially,

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

...Lehman may receive just six months of jail time...

Plenty of time for justice to be served from the inside.

There are people on the inside that don't take kindly to this kind of perp. This fresh fish will be getting married soon after he gets inside. I hope it's a long wedding night.

[Durus]

Agreed, a rope is re-usable.

[CajunConservative]

I imagine there is plenty of evidence to warrant charges in a two month old infant. No man I know would willingly admit to these charges if they were not guilty. Even with a plea bargain, six months would be a LONG time to survive the prison justice system for baby rapers.

[keri]

I don't buy that she was so influenced by shock and hormonal changes that she allowed this guy three weeks to breathe good air.

Sorry if I sound cruel, here, but most mothers would claw your eyeballs out if you touch their child, especially new mothers.

[chuknospam]

Shoot, shovel, shutup.

[americanSoul]

I would have killed him. DEAD. On the spot.

The best post re this monster so far. On the spot is right.

[eastforker]

Since you posted this article, could you get some follow up from the reporter that authered this story? Like if there was any forensic or physical evidence.All to often stories are posted without enough facts to go with it. The main question in my mind is, is the womans testimony the only evidence.

[SarahW]

He did plead guilty, after all. He probably confessed.
And believe me, there would be "forensic evidence" even three weeks later.

[exmarine]

This is just one more sign of the exceedingly wicked times we live in. JUSTICE will be served when the KING returns, and the wicked will be punished. There is no escape.

[eastforker]

I also noticed that the person that posted this article and pushing this petition has failed to respond to anyone here and it has been an hour.I would like some more info before I would sign a petition ,wouldn't you?

[BabsC]

If the story is true she is as guilty as he is.

I agree, if I walked in on that and it wasn't even my child I would still have killed that animal where he stood. That is the only thing I could have lived with afterword. The child is forever scarred.

[proud American in Canada]

"The main question in my mind is, is the womans testimony the only evidence."

Not with a two-month old baby.

[SarahW]

MOre info at this link.

http://216.239.41.104/search?q=cache:5jHO-IRb4RMJ:www.kingcountyjournal.com/sited/story/html/120932+%22Joseph+Lehman+Jr.%22+baby&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

He was sexually abusing the infant, but I'm not sure if it is alleged that he inserted his penis or not.

From the article above (local coverage of the story)

"Police said Lehman Jr. admitted having oral and manual sexual contact with the baby for about 10 minutes. He stopped, he said, because the child ``wasn't very happy about it,'' according to charging documents.

A doctor who examined the baby said there were no physical injuries"

[eastforker]

OK,did a google on this guy,he's guilty it looks like,said he did it before with a nine year old in Maine,also convicted of bank robbery before.He sid he had sexual contact with the child for ten minutes.This guy needs to FRY.

[proud American in Canada]

Thanks Sheri, I signed the petition--it was up to 2377 signatures.

It's interesting--you point out that the defendant is the son of an important official in the department of corrections.

This man must receive the maximum penalty, and even that's not good enough.

[proud American in Canada]

"said he did it before with a nine year old in Maine"

sick...

I appreciate your openmindedness!

also, if you look at sherim's petition--the defendant is the son of an official with the department of corrections.

[SarahW]

DId you see my reply to # 10? At the link below

http://216.239.41.104/search?q=cache:5jHO-IRb4RMJ:www.kingcountyjournal.com/sited/story/html/120932+%22Joseph+Lehman+Jr.%22+baby&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

a local article from the King county Journal contains not only his admission to molesting his own baby, but at least one other child.

"While interviewing Lehman Jr. in the current case, King County detectives said that Lehman Jr. also admitted molesting an unnamed 9-year-old girl in Maine in 1997, although he described the girl as the aggressor."


His daddy has helped him before, and he counted on daddy running interference again, it seems:


"``He said his dad would get him off, just like last time,'' Crowder said. ``He said if it wasn't for his dad, he would have spent a lot of time in jail.''

``Last time'' was in late 1989, when Lehman Jr. was convicted of orchestrating the robbery of a bank security vehicle in Tacoma that was delivering $25,000 to automated teller machines.
"

[CajunConservative]

I also noticed that the person that posted this article and pushing this petition has failed to respond to anyone here and it has been an hour.I would like some more info before I would sign a petition ,wouldn't you?

Okay, here's my opinion, if the person is guilty of raping a baby, and that's what he plead, then he should be put away for life at the very least. Anyone capable of raping a two month old infant isn't worth salvaging and should be put down like a rabid dog. This is a crime that no one who is innocent would ever ever ever plead guilty of if it was just a he said/she said situation.

I am sure that the investigators had a physical examination of the infant and there was enough damage done for there to be evidence for charges.

Had that been my child, after I castrated the scum, I would have killed him on the spot and saved the taxpayers plenty.

[Bikers4Bush]

If it were me and I were innocent I would not plead guilty no matter what.

In addition to whatever garbage sentence he gets he'll have to register as a sex offender. That is not something to be considered lightly.

[Cronos]

Send him to the Taliban.

[Canticle_of_Deborah]

If the story is true the baby would have needed major reconstructive surgery. She would have been in bad shape, if still alive, after waiting three weeks.

We had a case like this come into our ER. A man had raped (intercourse) his girlfriend's 8 month old daughter. The baby had to have surgery right away.

[eastforker]

As you can see in the above post there was no physical injuries.Looks like she caught him giving oral sex to the baby.Yes he should fry,no doubt.Sheri should have given us all the links to this story, it would have saved a lot of second guessing. This story is all over the net,the guy is a real scumbag.My original response was wary of just the mothers testimony.It is not beyond some people to accuse someone of something as horrendous as this just to get back at them for something else.What strikes me funny about this is the guy probably could have plead not guilty and could have easily been acquitted due to lack of physical evidence.This guy must have a death wish.

[CajunConservative]

I noticed there were no physical injuries due to the fact that it was oral/manual molestation. He was just getting the baby used to sexual contact being normal. Had he not been caught it would not have been very long before it progressed to physical penetration.

Even in a he said/ she said situation I just do not believe any man would plead guilty to molesting an infant. He would not live very long in jail. His father should be removed from his position in the department of corrections and held accountable.

The mother needs to be monitored very closely for not immediately contacting the police. She put her child in physical danger to be further abused since she caught him in the act.