Not Guilty Plea in Nev. Sex Tape Case
Court Alerts
A man accused of raping a little girl after a videotape of the child being assaulted was found in the Nevada desert pleaded not guilty Wednesday, and a judge set a trial date for April.
Chester Arthur Stiles, 37, stood next to his appointed lawyers and stared at the floor, saying little during his four-minute arraignment in Clark County District Court.
Stiles is accused of sexually assaulting a 2-year-old girl in September 2003, and a 6-year-old girl that December. Authorities say the videotape is of the first attack.
Stiles faces 22 felony charges including lewdness with a child under 14, sexual assault with a child under 14 and attempted sexual assault with a child under 14. If convicted, he could face multiple life terms in prison.
The judge set trial for April 14. Stiles was returned to jail, where he has been held since his Oct. 15 arrest in what authorities have called protective isolation. Stiles' lawyer Jeff Banks said he intends to seek bail.
Stiles became the object of a nationwide manhunt after a Nye County man turned the videotape over to sheriff's investigators in Pahrump, a town some 60 miles west of Las Vegas. Authorities released images from the tape and pleaded for public help to find the girl and her alleged attacker.
The girl was found safe with her mother in Las Vegas on Sept. 28. Stiles was arrested after police in the suburb of Henderson stopped him driving a car with no license plates.
The man who turned the tape over, 27-year-old Darrin Tuck, remained jailed Wednesday in Pahrump on a probation violation. Tuck said he found the tape in the desert, and his lawyer has said Tuck had no involvement with Stiles.
Tuck has pleaded not guilty to a felony charge of possession of child pornography, which carries a possible penalty of one to six years in state prison. No trial date has been set.
Related listings
-
Guilty plea in Middletown fatal shooting case
Court Alerts 01/09/2008A 28-year-old Hartford man has accepted a plea deal in a fatal shooting outside a Middletown barbershop in 2006. Angel DeThomas was one of four people in a car found speeding from the crime scene after Anthony Hall was shot and killed. Last year he r...
-
Court Imposes Strict Deadline in Lawsuit
Court Alerts 01/08/2008The Supreme Court on Tuesday imposed a six-year deadline for suing the federal government in property disputes.The justices ruled 7-2 that a company waited too long to complain in court that the government took the firm's property.The decision came i...
-
Minnesota Supreme Court denies Blom's third appeal
Court Alerts 01/03/2008[##_1L|1344592987.jpg|width="130" height="90" alt=""|_##]For the third time, an appeal by convicted killer Donald Blom has been turned back by the Minnesota Supreme Court. Blom was convicted in the 1999 kidnapping and killing of 19-year-old Moose Lak...
Is Now the Time to Really Call a Special Education Lawyer?
IDEA, FAPE, CHILD FIND and IEPs: The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) guarantees all children with disabilities to a free appropriate public education (FAPE). FAPE starts with a school’s responsibility to identify that a child has a disability (Child Find) and create an Individualized Education Program (IEP) to suit the needs of the child.
Forte Law Group is one of only a very few law firms within the state of Connecticut that is dedicated to exclusively representing families and children with special needs.
Parents need to be persistent, dedicated and above all else aware of the many services and accommodations that their child is entitled to under the law. As early as this point within your child’s special education, many parents will often find themselves in the situation asking, “is now the time to really call a special education lawyer?” Here are a few things to consider when asking yourself that question.