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Convicted sex offender gets sole custody of 6-year-old daughter. (kfor.com)
Sex offender awarded custody of 6-year-old girl. (bakersfieldnow.com)
much more, with a video, at link aboveOKLAHOMA CITY — In California, just six years ago, Nicholas Elizondo was convicted for raping his then six-year-old daughter. He took a deal and served six years in jail. During that time his ex-wife, Lisa Knight, has been raising their daughter Sarah in Norman.
After six years of little contact with Sarah, he started fighting for sole custody. Yesterday, he won.
Little Sarah’s family is shocked by the Oklahoma County judge’s decision.
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They thought it was a no-brainer. Both Sarah’s mother and cousin think there is more to Judge Howard Haralson’s decision than what was presented in the courtroom.
“His attorney was in the chambers with the judge while he was deliberating his decision,” said Sarah’s cousin Jodi Coomer. “There was laughter coming from the room.”
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Coomer says with a registered sexual predator as a father her childhood may not be much of a childhood.
“He can`t take her to Chuck E. Cheese. He can`t take her to a park,” said Coomer. “He can`t go to her school. He`s not allowed in school.”
With only hours left with Sarah they are both trying to keep a brave face. They say her father’s past will haunt her future.
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much more at ink below:---
As for his conviction in 1995, Elizondo said he merely took a plea bargain given what he was facing. Elizondo was facing 11 felony charges of lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14, but 10 of those were dismissed in exchange for Elizondo pleading no contest to one charge.
"It never happened," said Elizondo of the charge against him.
He said Thursday that police encouraged the child to say incriminating things during the investigation to build a case against him.
The incident happened a few years after Kern County prosecutors tried and juries convicted numerous people on child sex abuse charges, known as the "Witch Hunt" trials. People were given long prison sentences. Many of those same convictions were later tossed out after an appellate court found the accused had been wrongly convicted. The last of the wrongful conviction lawsuits was settled in March of this year.
During a court hearing in Oklahoma City regarding visitation, the victim, who authorities say was molested by Elizondo, testified that she was never molested.
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Sex offender awarded custody of 6-year-old girl. (bakersfieldnow.com)