2 UNNAMED CHILDREN - 5, 8 yo - (2012) / Convicted: Edwin Fox Jr - Gadsden, AL

Man convicted of child abuse

Johnnie Edwin Fox Jr.
Etowah County Sheriff's Office


Times Staff Report

Published: Friday, November 22, 2013 at 3:15 p.m.
Last Modified: Friday, November 22, 2013 at 6:39 p.m.

An Etowah County jury on Friday convicted Johnnie Edwin Fox Jr. on charges of aggravated child abuse, rape and sodomy in a trial that began Tuesday before Judge William Rhea.

Fox, 46, has a number of prior felony convictions and under the Alabama Habitual Felony Offender Act, faces a sentence of life imprisonment or life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

The case centered on the testimony of two children, ages 5 and 8. Fox was convicted on one count of aggravated child abuse against each of those children, and first-degree rape and first-degree sodomy against the 8-year-old.

Fox was arrested on Jan. 6, 2012, for the abuse charges and again on Sept. 10, 2012, for the sex-related charges. He pleaded not guilty on Nov. 15, 2012, to all the charges.

Deputy District Attorney Carol Griffith, who prosecuted the case, said that under Alabama law, when a person is convicted of any type of sexual abuse of a child younger than 12 years, there is no provision for “good time” or early parole. Because of that, either sentence imposed in this case essentially will be life without parole.

Griffith expressed gratitude to the jury, adding that this type of case is the most difficult jurors have to consider.

“Anytime you have to listen to such small children tell about such horrible crimes committed against them, it is upsetting,” she said. “The children in this case were incredibly brave in court, facing and testifying against the defendant,” she said.

Griffith also thanked the Etowah County Sheriff’s Department, the James M. Barrie Center for Children and the Department of Human Resources for their work in investigating the charges.

District Attorney Jimmie Harp said although the sentence to be imposed in this type of case is particularly harsh, it also is appropriate in cases where a person has repeatedly abused a small child.

“Those children will have to deal with the crimes committed against them for the rest of their lives,” he said. “When a jury finds a defendant guilty of those offenses, he should receive a sentence that requires him to deal with the consequences of his actions for the rest of his life as well.”

http://www.gadsdentimes.com/article/20131122/NEWS/131129953?tc=ar