State v. Robert Dale Aldridge, Jenny Wilcox
| Decision Date | 14 March 1997 |
| Docket Number | 15785,97-LW-0275 |
| Court | Ohio Court of Appeals |
| Parties | STATE OF OHIO, Plaintiff-Appellant v. ROBERT DALE ALDRIDGE, JENNY WILCOX, Defendants-Appellees Case |
George A. Katchmer, S.C. Regis. No. 0005031, Montgomery County Prosecutor's Office, Appellate Division, P.O. Box 972, 41 North Perry Street, Suite 315, Dayton, Ohio 45422, Attorney for Plaintiff-Appellant
Harry R. Reinhart, S.C. Regis. No. 0008294, Reinhart Law Office 330 South High Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215, Timothy Young S.C. Regis. No. 0059200, 301 W. Third Street, Lower Level, Dayton, Ohio 45422
Stuart Benis, S.C. Regis. No. 0031030, 326 South High Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215, and, Jay Milano, S.C. Regis. No. 0008204, Milano & Milano, 600 Standard Building, 1370 Ontario Street, Cleveland, Ohio 44113, Attorneys for Defendants-Appellees
In 1985, Petitioners-Appellees, M. Jenny Wilcox and Robert Dale Aldridge were convicted of several counts of child sexual abuse and related offenses, and were each sentenced to life imprisonment. A full ten years later their convictions were vacated and a new trial was granted by the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas in a civil proceeding brought pursuant to R.C. 2953.21. The State appeals from the court's determination.
In August of 1984, the Huber Heights Police Department began investigating allegations of child molestation in the Glenburn Green apartment complex. The investigation arose out of a complaint lodged by Sheila Hess, a resident of the complex who had heard that several neighborhood children had become sexually active with one another. Ms. Hess was especially alarmed because she believed that her six-year-old daughter, Modesta Lorenza, along with three other five-year-olds, two girls and one boy, had been forced to engage in sexual activities by two neighborhood boys. The boys were initially identified as Justin Chronopoulos, age seven, and Scott Barnette, age four.
Huber Heights Police Detective Jennifer Bazell was the primary investigator in the case. Det. Bazell interviewed children, parents, and neighbors in the area and recorded her observations in an ongoing police report (hereinafter "Long Report"). After reviewing the police report detailing another officer's investigation of Ms Hess' complaint, Det. Bazell identified the victims in the case as Mary Ann Picklesimer, a five-year-old girl, Chris Rodriguez, a five-year-old boy, Darcel White, a five-year-old girl, and Modesta Lorenza. She also identified the suspects as Scott Barnette, Justin Chronopoulos, and Justin's brothers, eleven-year-old Jason and twelve-year-old John Chronopoulos. As Det. Bazell interviewed the alleged victims, five other neighborhood boys ranging in age from eleven to thirteen began to emerge as suspects. Bazell determined that "[b]asically what we had was the suspects were forcing through threats the younger children to have sexual acts with the older kids and also was [sic] trying to force the younger kids to have sexual acts with each other." Appellees' Brief, Appendix A-100 (Long Report at 2). The names of more alleged victims emerged as the investigation continued.
After Det. Bazell's initial investigation, which included interviews with all of the suspects and alleged victims, the case took an important turn. Det. Bazell reported receiving phone calls from parents of the children involved informing her that their children were implicating adults in the alleged sexual encounters. The children were allegedly claiming that the adults were "having" the older boys have sex with the younger children and had threatened to kill the children if they told anyone. The parents reported that the children had used the names "Dale", "Jenny", "Jimmy", "Eric", "Aaron", and "Scar Face" in reference to the adults. The parents also told Det. Bazell that the children were saying that the adults were taking photographs and filming the children performing sex acts in several vacant apartments in the complex. An additional alleged victim, Tya Sheppard, age six, and an additional suspect, Tya's brother Ryan Sheppard, age twelve, were identified by the parents. Tya and Ryan also implicated adults when they were interviewed by Det. Bazell. Finally, Mary Anne Picklesimer's sister Valerie, age eight, gave Det. Bazell "definite information" regarding the photography by adults.
On the basis of the children's stories, Det. Bazell obtained a search warrant to look for child pornography in the Glenburn Green apartment where Jenny Wilcox and Dale Aldridge lived. The search revealed both developed and undeveloped rolls of cartridge film and movie film, but none contained child pornography. Additionally, according to the Long Report, "[a]ll of the children involved in this that were alleged victims were examined either by physicians of their own choice or at Children's Medical Center." Appellees' Brief, Appendix A-103 (Long Report at 5). The parents also wrote out statements on behalf of their children detailing the alleged sexual abuse by the adults.
Det. Bazell concluded that Dale Aldridge and Jenny Wilcox were the leaders of a group of adults who had been repeatedly sexually molesting the children of Glenburn Green. The two were arrested and charged for gross sexual imposition and pandering obscenity involving a minor. Det. Bazell continued her investigation into the role of the other named adults and the neighborhood boys who were the initial suspects. While most of the boys denied any sexual conduct, two of them, Justin Chronopoulos and Nathan Ruhl, admitted to having performed some sexual acts with younger children, but denied being a part of the other alleged sexual abuse.
Because, according to the Long Report, "[t]he three Chronopoulos boys had been indicated as suspects throughout this entire incident by every one of the children," Det. Bazell contacted the boys' mother and requested that the boys be brought to the police department for questioning. Appellees' Brief, Appendix A-108 (Long Report at 10). When the boys arrived, Det. Bazell interviewed them separately. She spoke first to John, who, at twelve years of age, was the oldest. According to her own report, Det. Bazell began her interview with John by telling him that she was authorized to detain him at the Juvenile Detention Center unless he gave her "some information that [she] requested." She then proceeded to tell John what the other children had said about adults directing, filming, and participating in sexual abuse at the apartment complex. She again told John that if he failed to "cooperate," he would be detained at Juvenile Detention Center. John began to identify several adults, including Dale Aldridge, as participants in sexual abuse. Det. Bazell reported the following:
When I started going through the list of victims, Modesta, Mary Ann, Christopher, Darcel, etc., he changed his story to where he stated that he heard that all of these people were there. He then started denying any part of it . . . . he changed his mind and he stated that he really didn't know what happened over there, that he wasn't there, that he had just heard that certain people were there, that he wasn't sure what apartment it happened in, etc. I started explaining to John once again that if he didn't come clean with me and was honest, he was going to be detained at Juvenile Detention Center. I also advised him that it was a very serious situation that we had, that he was withholding information and that I needed it. John still continued to change his story around. Finally I advised him that I was going to have him detained at the Juvenile Detention Center and if at any point he changed his mind and wanted to cooperate with me then he should get in touch with me. At that time I had John Chronopoulos transported downtown to the Juvenile Detention Center where he was detained on charges of rape and where he would be held until they had a hearing . . .
Appellees' Brief, Appendix A-110 (Long Report at 12).
Det. Bazell next threatened to detain Jason Chronopoulos as well if he did not give her the information that she was looking for. When Jason, like John, explained that he had heard about sexual abuse at one of the apartments but that he was not there, Det. Bazell told him that she would not "listen to him tell lies" and that she was "going to have him detained at the Juvenile Detention Center." Appellees' Brief, Appendix A-1109 (Long Report at 13). Jason became upset and began to cry. Det. Bazell had Jason taken to a holding cell at the police department to await transfer to juvenile detention. After an uncertain period of time in the holding cell, Jason indicated to a police officer that he wished to talk to Det. Bazell before he was transported. Jason told Det. Bazell about two occasions during which several adults had forced Jason, his brothers, and other boys to engage in sexual activity with younger children. Det. Bazell reported that she believed that John and Jason had much more knowledge than they had offered. She released Jason to his mother, telling him that she wanted to speak with him again and that she "wanted more information next time." Appellees' Brief, Appendix A-114 (Long Report at 16).
Shortly thereafter prosecutors began interviewing the alleged victims in order to assemble a case against Wilcox and Aldridge for the grand jury. After interviewing all of the children, the prosecutors determined that Valerie Picklesimer, age eight, would make the best witness. Many of the other children, including Chris Rodriguez and Tya Sheppard, were considered to be too young or too timid about the events to testify. At that point, Det. Bazell's impression of the case...
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