LIHUE — Jurors on Friday convicted Steven Westerman on five of six counts of sexual assault in the first degree for acts he committed 20 years ago against his six-year-old stepdaughter. Westerman, who had been on supervised release for three
LIHUE — Jurors on Friday convicted Steven Westerman on five of six counts of sexual assault in the first degree for acts he committed 20 years ago against his six-year-old stepdaughter.
Westerman, who had been on supervised release for three years, had his $50,000 bail revoked and was taken into custody. His sentencing is scheduled for April 28.
He faces 20 years in prison and could be sentenced to consecutive terms for the class A felonies on each count depending on the Hawaii Paroling Authority.
“The complaining witness was quite courageous to share what happened to her, and I am grateful that the jury listened attentively to her and fully considered the state’s case,” first deputy prosecuting attorney Jennifer Winn told The Garden Island.
The jury began deliberations at 12:45 p.m. Thursday. Parties were notified about 2:30 p.m. Friday that the jury had reached a verdict.
Jurors in Fifth Circuit Court found Westerman guilty on counts one through four and on count six. Jurors said Westerman was not guilty on count five, an incident which the victim said occurred in the hallway after school.
The 12 jurors had 34 pages of instructions they had to follow to convict the 40-year-old Westerman beyond a reasonable doubt on six counts of first-degree sexual assault.
The state had to prove six elements for each count: that the alleged abuse occurred on or between June 15, 1995 and through and including May 31, 1997 in the County of Kauai, that Westerman knowingly committed the acts, that the victim was less than 14 years old at the time of the alleged abuse, that the victim was born May 2, 1989, that the victim was alive on her 18th birthday and that Westerman was indicted on Oct. 25, 2012.
Testimony from at least one witness was all that was needed as proof, according to the jury instructions.
Westerman appeared composed after the verdict was read and was taken into custody without incident. His father, Kauai Fire Chief Robert Westerman, who had been at present at the week-long trial, sat beside his wife Ann Marie Wooten as well as Westerman’s girlfriend, who appeared solemn, in the gallery.
The Westermans declined to comment.
Winn laid the foundation for the state’s final argument Thursday.
“When (the victim) was six years old, her life drastically changed,” she said. “Her family changed … (The victim) was experiencing something that no child should. The defendant, Steven Westerman was molesting her.”
Winn then described the allegations of abuse and said although the victim could not recall certain details of the alleged abuse, she could recall the abuse itself.
Winn also disputed defense attorney Craig De Costa’s arguments, calling them a “scattershot of ideas,” listing them one by one and checking them off.
De Costa said in his closing that Westerman never had a “full and fair investigation by police.”
“There was no corroborating evidence, no medical records, no school records, no interviews with neighbors, no physical evidence, no DNA,” De Costa told the jurors. “Is that sufficient for you to be sure to be beyond with a reasonable doubt? Common sense says no. If you have any reasonable doubt, you have to find the defendant not guilty.”
De Costa moved for a mistrial on the basis that a juror was switched out Thursday for an alternate juror. Judge Randal Valenciano denied the motion.
De Costa declined to comment after Friday’s verdict.
