Victim was under age of 13
A Luling man was sentenced to 30 years in jail for the oral sexual battery of a child.
Fabian Celestine was sentenced by Judge Lauren Lemmon and must serve 25 years of his sentence without benefit of parole, probation or suspension of his sentence. The victim was under the age of 13. He faced a maximum sentence of 99 years.
Celestine was found guilty after less than 25 minutes of jury deliberation.
Celestine was also accused of threatening the witness, who eventually recanted her statements against him. Because of those alleged threats, Celestine had five years added to his sentence.
“Although on the morning of trial, the victim in the case recanted her numerous previous consistent statements about what happened to her, my prosecutors were able to convince the jury that the recantation was simply the result of external influence upon the victim to change her story at the last minute,” St. Charles Parish District Attorney Joel Chaisson said.
Chaisson II added that the verdict was “the only just one under the circumstances.”
Earlier this month, Celestine filed motions to have his sentence reconsidered and reduced.
Celestine’s defense cites the U.S. Supreme Court case of Apprendi v. New Jersey, which set a precedent that every fact used to increase a defendant’s sentence must be either admitted to by the defendant or proven beyond a reasonable doubt to a jury. Celestine claims that findings he intimidated the witness were not proven.
The state has been ordered to show cause, if any, that Celestine’s motion should not be granted.
Celestine is currently serving his sentence at Nelson Coleman Correctional Facility.
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