Legal Analysis By Attorneys
Breaking Legal News
Lawyer Comments: Sex abuse attorney Jeff Gibson will discuss the legal rights of youth sports sex abuse victims in the second section of this article.
A travel basketball coach in Anderson, Indiana has been charged with raping two girls on his team and is currently under investigation for allegedly sexually assaulting a third.
27-year-old Marc A. Jones has been charged with 10 felony counts of rape and sexual misconduct with a minor.
These charges include Level 1 felony charges of rape and sexual misconduct with a minor, Level 3 felony charges of rape and criminal confinement, four Level 4 felony charges of sexual misconduct with a minor, one Level 5 felony charge of sexual misconduct with a minor, and a Level 6 felony charge of pointing a firearm.
Jones could face a prison sentence of 63 to 168 years if convicted on all counts.
He is accused of raping a 14-year-old girl in the parking lot of Frankton Elementary School in August of 2019. Jones reportedly offered her a ride home from practice and then pulled into a parking lot before raping her with a gun to her head.
Jones allegedly tried to sexually assault the same girl a second time at the Park Place Community Center a few months later.
A second 15-year-old female victim told police that Jones sexually assaulted her twice in the same day at the Park Place Community Center in late December 2019 or early January 2020.
The second victim told police that Jones raped her in the backseat of his car in an alley about a month later.
Police have asked any other victims to contact the Madison County Unified Dispatch at 765-642-0221.
Attorney contributor Jeff Gibson represents sex abuse victims and their families. Jeff has some information to add on the legal rights of youth sports sex abuse victims:
In youth sports and all other fields that involve working with kids, it’s critical to make sure that all adults involved are trustworthy. Sadly, these organizations are sometimes targeted by child predators who exploit their positions of trust in order to abuse players on their teams.
Youth sports organizations have a legal duty to protect their players from sexual predators. When a coach is charged with sexually abusing a player, we should ask if the organization met this legal duty.
Some incidents of sexual abuse in youth sports are preventable and only happen due to organizational negligence – such as failing to run background checks. In cases of negligence, the victims and their families may have a case for a lawsuit against the league.
If you or a loved one has been sexually abused by a youth sports coach, contact us today to learn more about your legal rights in a free consultation.
https://www.wthr.com/article/travel-basketball-coach-charged-raping-teenager-gunpoint
info@legalherald.com