Hector Rico faces decades in prison after a Schuylkill County jury convicted him on Friday of raping a preteen girl four times in Shenandoah.
The jury deliberated less than 30 minutes before finding Rico, 34, of Shenandoah, guilty of four counts each of rape of a child and another sex-related crime and one each of corruption of minors and endangering the welfare of children.
Judge Jacqueline L. Russell, who presided over Rico’s two-day trial, ordered preparation of both a presentence investigation and an evaluation by the state Sexual Offenders Assessment Board, and said she would schedule sentencing for a later date. Each rape charge carries a potential prison sentence of 20 to 40 years in a state correctional institution.
After the verdict, Rico returned to prison, where he has been held in lieu of $250,000 straight cash bail. Russell continued that bail, but added a provision that Rico have no contact with the victim.
The verdict ended a trial that saw both the victim and her mother testify about the terrible events, while Rico neither testified nor presented any other evidence.
Shenandoah police charged Rico with raping the girl at least four times when she was 11 and 12 years old during the 2014-15 school year at her residence. Prosecutors presented evidence that the girl became pregnant as a result of one of the incidents and that Rico was the baby’s father.
In his closing argument, Assistant Public Defender Kent D. Watkins, Rico’s lawyer, said the jury needed to examine the prosecution’s case carefully.
“You must decide whether there are four instances,” he said. “You have to look at it in the big picture of what’s going on. Have they proven four events beyond a reasonable doubt?”
Watkins reminded jurors that the girl said she did not feel threatened by Rico and she showed no behavior or trauma that would indicate that Rico was doing anything to her.
“You have to base (your verdict) on the testimony,” he said.
Watkins, who was not available for comment after the verdict, also said the prosecution’s witnesses might not have told the whole story.
“It seems there was more going on than meets the eye,” he said.
However, jurors accepted the closing argument of Assistant District Attorney Debra A. Smith, who told them the victim’s age was a key factor.
“She was 12. We need to remember that. She didn’t know something was wrong,” Smith said. “Think of the burden an adult woman has in telling her family she’s pregnant. Make her 12.”
Smith said the girl’s age also was important legally.
“At 12, she can’t decide yes or no,” according to Smith. “Consent is not an issue.”
Smith said the girl’s age also means there was no doubt who was the dominant person in the incidents.
“I submit to you that Mr. Rico was in control of everything and something went wrong,” she said. “Even with the pregnancy test, she didn’t understand what was going on.”
Furthermore, Rico admitted to police that he had sexual relations with the girl three times, Smith said. He was everything an adult should not be, she said.
“He was there to protect her. The evidence shows he raped her instead,” Smith said of Rico.
After the verdict, Smith could not have been more pleased.
“I definitely feel delighted,” she said.
Smith praised the victim, whom she called “the hero” of the case, as well as Shenandoah police, Schuylkill Women in Crisis and others who aided the prosecution.
“I think the key to the case was the truthful testimony of the victim,” Smith said. “I was just the person who had the honor to conduct their teamwork and present it to the court.”
She also said she decided not to pursue the 22 other charges originally filed against Rico because many of them duplicated the 10 she decided to have submitted to the jury.
“We felt the case was strong enough to proceed with the major elements,” Smith said.
Defendant: Hector Rico
Age: 34
Residence: Shenandoah
Verdict: Guilty of four counts each of rape of a child and another sex-related crime and one count each of corruption of minors and endangering the welfare of children.