The Herald, Sharon, Pa.

Local News

September 30, 2009

UPDATE: Alleged child rapist poised to seek plea deal

By Matt Snyder

MERCER COUNTY — An 8-year-old girl was spared having to testify against the man accused of raping her over a 3 1/2-year period on Wednesday when he stipulated his charges to court.

Jason L. Hites, 27, of Harrisville, had charges of rape, aggravated indecent assault, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, sexual assault, indecent assault, indecent exposure, and corruption of minors stipulated to Common Pleas Court before District Judge D. Neil McEwen, Pine Township.

Stipulating charges means admitting there’s evidence for them to move to Common Pleas Court without admitting guilt. However, Assistant District Attorney Ryan Bonner and Hites’ defense attorney Douglas E. Straub both said they are stipulating charges to court so a guilty plea can be negotiated.

Defendants cannot plead guilty to charges as serious as Hites’ in district courts.

Bonner said any negotiated plea deal would probably not occur for another two or three months.

The 8-year-old and her family were able to leave shortly after the hearing began, visibly relieved.

Hites, meanwhile, hunched and appeared strained and emotional at the hearing, doubling over in his chair at its conclusion.

He is accused of first assaulting the girl when she was 4, in Dec. 2006 in Mercer, police said. He also allegedly assaulted her in the summer of 2008 in Harrisville and then in June and July in Pine Township, they said.

The abuse may have stopped sooner, but the girl’s mother did not believe the victim’s claim that Hites was raping her, police said. Hites is a convicted sex offender, but the mother said she “forgave” him.

Police were notified when the girl told a female relative and some friends, who alerted adults, police said.

A girl relative witnessed one of the assaults, and police said they seized two pairs of the girl’s underwear, but did not disclose if any evidence was recovered.

Hites pleaded guilty to a 2000 charge of indecent assault on a child under 13 that occurred in Springfield Township, and was sentenced to 3 to 18 months in Mercer County Jail. He was not deemed a sexually violent predator, but was required under Megan’s Law to report his whereabouts and other information to authorities.

In 2006, he pleaded guilty to failing to notify authorities of a change of address, and paid a fine.

Text Only
Local News
  • Recycling program a bit too popular

    The  county’s effort at going green by encouraging recycling in rural areas has been a tremendous success by most accounts, but isn’t without a few glitches. In Wilmington Township, residents often only have a window of a few minutes to get cardboard recyclables in before the bin is full, prompting a discussion among Mercer County Commissioners Wednesday morning.

    May 25, 2012

  • District will tap reserve fund

    Reynolds school directors plan to fill a $374,567 hole in the 2012-2013 budget with money from the district’s fund balance.

    May 25, 2012

  • School board mulls change to sports chaperone policy

    In order to comply with the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association, the Sharpsville Area School Board is looking to adjust a chaperone policy it implemented six months ago.

    May 25, 2012

  • Afternoon crash hurts 3 high school students

    Three Jamestown High School students were injured – one seriously – when their pickup left a roadway in southwest Crawford County and crashed into a tree Tuesday afternoon.

    May 24, 2012

  • Board sells some, holds some

    Brookfield Board of Education members voted Tuesday to accept only the bids for the elementary school and the middle school, for a total of $97,050.
    The decision came after an hour-long executive session.

    May 24, 2012

  • Levey: Kohl’s project died with school vote

    Stripped of the necessity of voting for a tax incremental finance plan by Hermitage School Board’s unwillingness to participate, Mercer County commissioners said Wednesday they would like to meet with school board and Hermitage city officials to discuss other ways they can help Levey and Co. build a retail development in the city.

    But Levey spokeswoman Jeffrey A. Mills said there is nothing to discuss.

    May 24, 2012

  • Warden expects hectic season at county jail

    With the unofficial start of summer just a few days away, Mercer County Jail officials are preparing for a busy season.

    May 23, 2012

  • Levey officially drops TIF request

    Levey & Co. has officially ended its request for a tax incremental financing plan to build a retail development anchored by a Kohl’s department store.

    May 23, 2012

  • Grant will pay to fix 12-15 homes



    The City of Farrell will be able to fix up about a dozen homes in the city thanks to a $300,000 HOME grant from the state.

    May 23, 2012

  • Hard budget choices yet to come


     
    Hermitage School Board has been fortunate in many ways during the economic downturn that has been so hard on many other schools.

    May 23, 2012