A shocking turn of events for the United States Olympics Team USA Gymnastics group, after one of their own is sentenced to prison for Child Pornography.
54-year-old Larry Nassar, the former Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics doctor whose work has brought both America and himself to multiple Olympic Games, has been standing trial for child pornography, which has since rocked the sports world.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">WATCH LIVE: Victims of ex-Team USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar speak after he was sentenced to 60 years for child pornography <a href="https://t.co/IFVR1swyud">https://t.co/IFVR1swyud</a> <a href="https://t.co/0Q7nYB116e">pic.twitter.com/0Q7nYB116e</a></p>— CBS News (@CBSNews) <a href="https://twitter.com/CBSNews/status/938835945645895681?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 7, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Nassar received what amounts to an effective life sentence Thursday after a Federal Judge sentenced him to 60 years in federal prison after being found guilty to the child pornography charges to which he's admitted.
“He has demonstrated that he should never again have access to children,” U.S. District Judge Janet Neff said.
Judge Neff decided that the severity of the case required a sentence that went beyond normal guidelines calling for 22 to 27 years in prison.
Larry Nassar was sentenced to 20 years on each of three counts against him, to be served consecutively which amounts to 60 full years in prison.
Judge Neff also ordered that his federal time is served consecutively to state sentences for sexual assault against women and children to which he's also admitted guilt prior to trial.
He will be sentenced next month on those charges, in state and local courtrooms
On Thursday courtroom was filled with spectators, including several victims of his admitted sexual assault, their relatives, and their attorneys.
Several of those victims said that after the sentencing they were still trying to process their feelings, but it was a step toward justice.
“I was blown away with what the Judge did today, and I thought it was very fitting," Larissa Boyce, who had first raised concerns about Nassar to an MSU Coach back in early 1997, said at a news conference after the hearing.” I can’t thank her enough for the things that she said.”
It's interesting to see a Judge bring forth such a harsh and much-needed sentence against a brutal pedophile, who had been responsible for decades of atrocities against innocent victims.
In court filings last week, Nassar's attorneys asked Judge Neff to show some leniency on their client, saying that the doctor had worked toward redemption by helping fellow inmates and taking Bible classes since his arrest nearly a year ago, but that clearly is theatrics that is unrelated to the crimes and the severity of damage suffered by the Victims.
During a speech to the court, Nassar, speaking in a quiet voice from the courtroom podium on Thursday, told Judge Neff he’d long battled an addiction he likened to alcoholism or drug addiction, according to the<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/sports/wp/2017/12/07/larry-nassar-usa-gymnastics-doctor-sentenced-to-60-years-on-child-porn-charges/?utm_term=.c3b20a3758d4"> Washington Post</a>.
He tried to justify his actions by saying that his “shame kept him from asking for help,” he said.
Nassar went on to say that he hoped his crimes would educate people about the problem to prevent others from being hurt in the future.
“You go back and you wonder how I got down this path to begin with,” he said. “I really did try to be a good person. I really did try to help people. I hope one day I can be forgiven, and I’m going to take every day of your sentence to try to better myself.”
As for now, justice has somewhat been served, where Nassar will now go and serve 60 years, equivalent to a life sentence at his age, behind bars where he belongs.
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Child porn is seriously sick, and these people need to be put away for a long time. YES I AGREE.
But the 60 year sentence, when murder only gets you 25-to life, child prostitution sentences typically range from 10-30 years.
Realistically I see this case being appealed on the grounds of Over Sentencing Abuse and the sentence reduced to 20-30 years.