A Tulsa woman received five consecutive life terms Thursday after pleading no contest to sex crimes with a young male relative.
Melissa Kay Anderson, 35, was charged with five counts of sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12 in September after the boy told his father, who contacted authorities. She entered a plea of no contest in November.
Three of the counts pertain to sex acts Anderson performed on the boy and made him perform on her. The other two counts accuse her of having sex with Michael Burris, her boyfriend and co-defendant, in front of the victim and showing the victim pornography.
As she sat in the courtroom's jury box Thursday afternoon awaiting District Judge Caroline Wall's arrival, a red-faced Anderson wiped her eyes with a tissue and appeared to stifle strong emotions.
Assistant District Attorney Kevin Gray argued for Anderson to be incarcerated for life, calling the case the worst of its type he's seen.
"I don't believe Ms. Anderson should breathe fresh air again," Gray said.
Public defender Chuck Sullivan countered that the system had failed Anderson from a young age by not properly addressing and treating abuse she received as a child that resulted in her being placed in foster care. He maintained a life sentence would be "excessive" and akin to failing her a second time by not allowing her to seek rehabilitation.
When asked whether she'd like to make a statement, Anderson's sobs became audible as Sullivan leaned close to decipher her words. He relayed to the court that Anderson said, "I'm sorry."
Aside from finding her guilty and issuing a sentence, Wall had few words for Anderson.
Wall imposed life terms on all counts and then stated that based on "the heinous nature" of the crimes the sentences will run consecutively to each other.
The author of Anderson's presentencing investigation report, which is issued by the Department of Corrections, noted she said the abuse occurred while she was high on methamphetamine and that she didn't recall most of the incidents. However, she did state that she knew the victim would not lie about what had happened.
Her honesty is quite impressive here as she accepts responsibility for her actions. It would have been better for her, and probably for the boy, if the government had taken some responsibility for her mental and emotional health 20 or 25 years ago. Let's hope and pray that the boy gets some help to deal with the trauma before he becomes a pervert.
Burris, who remains at the Tulsa Jail, is charged with one count of sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12 and one count of permitting child sexual abuse. He has previously pleaded not guilty to the crimes and is scheduled for a jury trial on May 11.
Three of the counts pertain to sex acts Anderson performed on the boy and made him perform on her. The other two counts accuse her of having sex with Michael Burris, her boyfriend and co-defendant, in front of the victim and showing the victim pornography.
As she sat in the courtroom's jury box Thursday afternoon awaiting District Judge Caroline Wall's arrival, a red-faced Anderson wiped her eyes with a tissue and appeared to stifle strong emotions.
Assistant District Attorney Kevin Gray argued for Anderson to be incarcerated for life, calling the case the worst of its type he's seen.
"I don't believe Ms. Anderson should breathe fresh air again," Gray said.
Public defender Chuck Sullivan countered that the system had failed Anderson from a young age by not properly addressing and treating abuse she received as a child that resulted in her being placed in foster care. He maintained a life sentence would be "excessive" and akin to failing her a second time by not allowing her to seek rehabilitation.
When asked whether she'd like to make a statement, Anderson's sobs became audible as Sullivan leaned close to decipher her words. He relayed to the court that Anderson said, "I'm sorry."
Aside from finding her guilty and issuing a sentence, Wall had few words for Anderson.
Wall imposed life terms on all counts and then stated that based on "the heinous nature" of the crimes the sentences will run consecutively to each other.
The author of Anderson's presentencing investigation report, which is issued by the Department of Corrections, noted she said the abuse occurred while she was high on methamphetamine and that she didn't recall most of the incidents. However, she did state that she knew the victim would not lie about what had happened.
Her honesty is quite impressive here as she accepts responsibility for her actions. It would have been better for her, and probably for the boy, if the government had taken some responsibility for her mental and emotional health 20 or 25 years ago. Let's hope and pray that the boy gets some help to deal with the trauma before he becomes a pervert.
Burris, who remains at the Tulsa Jail, is charged with one count of sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12 and one count of permitting child sexual abuse. He has previously pleaded not guilty to the crimes and is scheduled for a jury trial on May 11.
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