Man on Trial for Child Rape & Triple Murder Jumps to Death from Courthouse Balcony

© WKBN27 / YouTube

A man has jumped to his death from an Ohio courthouse balcony just before standing trial for triple murder and the rape of a 10-year-old girl.

Robert Seman Jnr faced the death penalty if he was found guilty of the rape and murder of 10-year-old Corinne Gump and the murder of her grandparents Judy and William Schmidt, whose home he allegedly set on fire in March 2015.

However, the 48-year-old plunged to his death after flinging himself from the fourth floor courthouse balcony – just as he was about to enter the courtroom.

CCTV footage of the macabre incident released by Mahoning County Sheriff’s office shows Seman being escorted by police officers along a county courthouse corridor in Youngstown, Ohio.

Seman, dressed in a white shirt and khaki pants, was not wearing handcuffs at the time of the incident and managed to hurl himself over the balcony as cops belatedly scrambled to stop him.

Mahoning County Sheriff Jerry Greene told WKBN that the lack of handcuffs was standard procedure, “Due to the fact that the courts do not want individuals on trial to be seen with restraining devices on, or per se, in custody.”

Seman’s attorney said the apparent suicide was completely unexpected as his client maintained his innocence.

However the prosecution say his actions were an indication of guilt. "He knew the evidence against him,” Assistant Prosecutor Dawn Cantalamessa said. “Every witness we talked to in preparation for the case, they didn't know why he wasn't pleading guilty or asking for some sort of plea, so this is very telling.”

Prosecutors allege that Seman abused Corinne Gump from the age of four to nine years old. Investigators believe he set fire to the house hours before the child was due to testify against him for the years of alleged sexual assault. He had only recently been released from prison under electronic monitoring and was awaiting trial on the rape charges.

Days after the deadly arson attack Seman was charged with attempting to bribe his ex-wife to lie for him at the rape trial, Cleveland.com report. The woman allegedly refused her ex-husband’s request.

The Sheriff's office is conducting an internal investigation into the incident.

Mahoning Co., Ohio

'Child Houses' to be Set Up for Young Sex Abuse Victims in London

File photo. copyright THINKSTOCK

UK - Two so-called "child houses" are to be set up to support victims of sexual abuse and help them through the court process, the home secretary has said.

Under the £7.2m project, children and young people will be able to get medical care and therapeutic support and give evidence in a single building.

Amber Rudd said the plans would put victims' needs "front and centre".

The charity NSPCC said the announcement was a "welcome step" towards minimising suffering.

Both houses will open in London next year. They will each look after about 200 children and young people annually.

The project is being led by the London Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime and NHS England and funded by the Home Office Police Innovation Fund.


Home Secretary Amber Rudd on the Andrew Marr show. Image copyright PA

Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr show, Ms Rudd said: "What I'm doing... is making sure that children are protected going forward.

"It's about making sure that we learn the lessons from the child abuse scandals of the past and that we actually act now."

Unfortunately, the police don't seem to have learned anything


The child house model

The idea for child houses is based on the "Barnahus" in Iceland, which provides one building for victims of child sexual abuse to receive a variety of services, the Home Office said.

It said the Icelandic system offered "a more child-friendly service and environment to help young victims through the criminal justice process" and has been shown to "speed up the progress of investigations and court cases".


A single interview takes place in Iceland's children's houses, known as a 'Barnahus'

Within the building, victims will give recorded interviews to child psychologists and specially trained police officers, reducing the need to give multiple sets of evidence to different agencies.

The child house is also expected to provide a safe and "sympathetic" environment where victims can give evidence through video links to court.

A spokesman for the children's charity NSPCC said it had been a strong advocate for the houses and was working with the government to make them happen.


New approaches

In a statement, Ms Rudd said: "As we investigate and prosecute these crimes it is vital that victims, who have already suffered in ways most of us could never imagine, are supported and protected throughout the process.

"The Home Office is providing police forces with funding that rewards and incentivises new approaches to police work and drives forward positive change.

"The child houses, by improving evidence gathering while putting the needs of the victim front and centre, demonstrate exactly the kind of innovative thinking that we are encouraging."

The Home Office added the development of the child houses was part of wider government plans.

These include launching a £1.24m Child Sexual Exploitation Response Unit giving specialist support to people working in safeguarding in the UK, and providing ongoing funding for projects in England and Wales which help victims and survivors of sexual abuse.

Congratulations on this project, it's a great idea.

Now could you just get some appropriate teaching in elementary schools about good touch/bad touch, etc?