WEST VIRGINIA
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
By GREG JORDAN Bluefield Daily Telegraph
PRINCETON — After citing a lack of remorse and attempts to discredit a victim, a special judge sentenced an admitted transgender man to spend between two to 10 years in prison for first-degree sexual abuse.
James Lilly, 25, of Bluefield was brought before Special Judge John A. Hutchinson of Raleigh County, who was appointed after Circuit Court Judge Derek Swope recused himself. Lilly pleaded guilty in August 2016 in Mercer County Circuit Court to three counts of first-degree sexual abuse. Each charge carries a penalty of one to five years in prison.
Lilly, a former youth pastor, was arrested Jan. 12, 2016 and later indicted on 28 counts of first-degree sexual abuse as well as charges of third-degree sexual assault and incest. After his arrest, Lilly told detectives with the Bluefield Police Department that he was transgender and in the process of becoming a woman.
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