CA - Tommy Daniels arrested for child molestation, Citrus Heights, 2011

http://www.news10.net/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=114612&provider=top

Rio Linda pastor arrested for child molestation

"Pastor Tom Daniels of First Baptist Church of Rio Linda [CA] was arrested by Citrus Heights police Dec. 9 and charged with six felony counts of child molestation. Citrus Heights police officials said Daniels, 48, faces felony counts of lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14 years old and sexual conduct with a child...."

and

"....Authorities said there is one known victim but believe other victims could still be out there. Lt. Ray Bechler said Daniels has worked as a day care provider and been a foster parent...."

more at link (mug shot)


And:

http://www.sacbee.com/2011/01/01/3293009/rio-linda-church-expresses-support.html

Rio Linda church expresses support for accused pastor

"The board of a Rio Linda church, whose pastor has been arrested on suspicion of child molestation, released a statement of support on Saturday...."

and

"...Daniels is being held in Sacramento County Jail. Daniels' bail is set at $6 million...."

and

"...Police said the charges against Daniels involve incidents that allegedly occurred between June 2004 and June 2007. Police investigated an initial complaint in 2008 but were unable to come up with enough evidence for the DA to file charges.

In recent months, another victim came forward.


more at link



A victim had to wait 6 years for this monster to be arrested. Who knows how many children this man traumatized even AFTER all eyes were on him. I can't understand how a church can support him or how they could have even hired him or kept him on with serious allegations.

Now, I'm beginning to understand. This couple took in special needs children for respite (short term stays). Because the children were legally adopted, they didn't need a license as that had been revoked. Daniels preyed on girls who typically have problems with lying and acting out--girls with Reactive Attachment Disorder. He chose very carefully and I'm certain that the girls' histories of telling tales will play a huge part in the trial.


http://www.sacbee.com/2011/02/04/3376742/citrus-heights-pastor-ordered.html

Citrus Heights pastor ordered to stand trial on molestation charges

"A hush fell over the courtroom Thursday as a Baptist pastor from Citrus Heights was ordered to stand trial on charges that he had molested girls as young as 5 in his home. Tommy Gene Daniels, 48, was returned to jail on $6 million bail after Superior Court Judge Lloyd G. Connelly found there was probable cause to try him on six felony counts of child molestation involving five alleged victims..."

and

"....Tommy and B [EBM] Daniels had been under intense scrutiny for years from child welfare agencies.

B Daniels lost her day care and foster care licenses in 2003 due to substandard care, violations of state regulations, lying to state and county workers and misappropriating public funds – as well as her husband's threat to a social worker about having a gun, according to records from the California Department of Social Services.

Despite the violations, a therapist from Loomis continued to place high-needs children in the home...."

more at link

I completely missed updating this disturbing case. Daniels came to trial in November and there was a verdict this last week:

Concerning the trial:

NOTE: Some interesting statistics about false allegations and the all too common issue of victims waiting years to report.

http://www.sacbee.com/2011/11/18/4063789/prosecution-rests-in-pastors-sexual.html

Prosecution rests in pastor's sexual molestation trial

".....[Anthony] Urquiza, a professor in the UC Davis School of Medicine's pediatrics department, testified as an expert on what he called "child sexual abuse accommodation syndrome." According to Urquiza, the theory of the syndrome holds that it is common for children to keep their victimization secret. He said it also explains a sense of helplessness and entrapment that children feel about their molestation. He testified that it is typical for children to delay reporting sexual molestation and that as many as 25 percent of victims will retract their allegations after they make them...."

and

"....Urquiza's testimony attacked the heart of the defense case. In his opening statement, Chastaine told jurors the prosecution of his client is largely based on the untruthful testimony of four of the five alleged victims. He suggested in his questioning of the four that they lied about the abuse and that the notion they had been sexually molested had been planted in their heads by another psychotherapist. He directly accused one of the girls of lying in his cross-examination of her...."

and

"...[Dr. Jeremy] Colley testified about the side effects of assorted antipsychotic and other medications. Four of the girls who testified against Daniels said they were taking the substances when they lived in his house in 2003 and 2004. Among the side effects of the drugs, Colley said, are "sedation" and "somnolence...."

More at link

And:

http://blogs.sacbee.com/crime/archi...io-linda-pastors-child-molestation-trial.html

Defense rests in Rio Linda pastor's child molestation trial


And, the verdict:

http://www.sacbee.com/2011/12/09/4110943/baptist-pastor-convicted-of-molesting.html

Baptist pastor convicted of molesting 5 girls in his Citrus Heights home
December 11, 2011

"The trial came down to the word of a Baptist preacher who castigated as liars the troubled little girls who called him a child molester. In the end, after nearly four days of deliberations, a Sacramento Superior Court jury compared his testimony against theirs and came down clear and strong Thursday about who had credibility and who didn't.

On 11 of 12 counts, the jury said they believed the girls about what happened in the home of Tommy Gene Daniels. Now, the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Rio Linda is looking at spending 165 years to life in prison...."

and

"...Daniels, 49, who was booked into the downtown jail exactly one year ago today for the sex crimes that took place six to eight years ago in his Citrus Heights home, sat impassively while the jury's guilty verdicts were read. The mother of one of the victims wept softly when the jury came back with its decision on the first count. It involved her daughter – now 12, then 5..."

and

"...While the first victim had been placed in the house for day care, the other four were referred to in court as "respite kids." They all had been adopted, and all had behavioral issues, including a propensity to lie. Deputy District Attorney Kimberly Macy said in her closing argument that Daniels played off the questions about their believability to target them as his molestation victims...."

and

"...Daniels' lawyer, Michael L. Chastaine, said he was "incredibly disappointed" by the verdict but that his client "took it like a man...."

and

"....Judge Trena H. Burger-Plavan scheduled Daniels' sentencing for Jan. 13. He faces 15 years to life in prison on each count..."


More at link (plus almost 150 comments)

June 2015 - appeal:

Defendant contends:

(1) the trial court erred in allowing evidence of the Child Sexual Abuse Accommodation Syndrome (CSAAS);

(2) the court erred in excluding evidence of victims’ mental health issues;

(3) the evidence is insufficient for several counts;

(4) the trial court erred in positioning a uniformed officer near defendant during trial without any finding of necessity;

(5) the cumulative effect of errors was prejudicial;

(6) the court erred in ordering section 1202.1 HIV/AIDS testing; and

(7) jail booking and classification fees were improper because there was insufficient evidence of defendant’s ability to pay and of the actual administrative costs.

We reverse as to the HIV test order and otherwise affirm the judgment.

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