03-03-2006, 09:52 PM
A former Mechanicsburg man convicted of molesting an autistic Shiremanstown boy was sentenced to 51/2 to 15 years in state prison.
Cumberland County President Judge Edgar B. Bayley imposed that penalty yesterday, four months after a county jury found Joseph Edward Friary, 42, guilty of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and indecent assault.
Friary's victim was the prosecution's key witness.
"We're just glad to put this part of it behind us," the boy's mother said after the sentencing.
The boy was 11 when Friary molested him in the boy's bedroom in July 2004, police said. They said Friary fled to Mexico after confessing to the crime and was arrested in December 2004 after crossing the border into El Paso, Texas.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Michelle Sibert called for a severe sentence, saying Friary's actions have caused the boy to have behavioral problems. Bayley also cited the "grave seriousness of the crime."
Senior Assistant Public Defender Timothy Clawges said Friary, who has cerebral palsy, has psychological problems of his own, including depression.
"He's constantly been belittled and tries to fit in," Clawges said. "Because of this, he enters into inappropriate relationships ... He has a lot of feelings of frustration and rejection."
Cumberland County President Judge Edgar B. Bayley imposed that penalty yesterday, four months after a county jury found Joseph Edward Friary, 42, guilty of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and indecent assault.
Friary's victim was the prosecution's key witness.
"We're just glad to put this part of it behind us," the boy's mother said after the sentencing.
The boy was 11 when Friary molested him in the boy's bedroom in July 2004, police said. They said Friary fled to Mexico after confessing to the crime and was arrested in December 2004 after crossing the border into El Paso, Texas.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Michelle Sibert called for a severe sentence, saying Friary's actions have caused the boy to have behavioral problems. Bayley also cited the "grave seriousness of the crime."
Senior Assistant Public Defender Timothy Clawges said Friary, who has cerebral palsy, has psychological problems of his own, including depression.
"He's constantly been belittled and tries to fit in," Clawges said. "Because of this, he enters into inappropriate relationships ... He has a lot of feelings of frustration and rejection."