JACKSONILLE, Fla. — After an investigation by Jacksonville Sheriff’s Department of a sexual abuse incident, Raney Richardson Sr., 68, has been arrested.
JSO was notified about the 1989 incident on August 22, 2022.
According to the arrest report, the sexual assault happened while the victim was in the fourth grade. Richardson was 34 at the time. The victim was left under Richardson’s care for hours at a time.
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In the report, the victim states they recall spending the night at Richardson’s house and sleeping with his children. In the middle of the night, Richardson would enter the room while his children were sleeping.
The victim says he woke her up, covered her mouth, and touched her invasively while his kids were on the other bed.
The arrest report description states that recently the victim decided to call Richardson and make him apologize for what he has done.
Richardson did apologize to the victim through the recorded phone call.
After the recorded conversation between the victim and Richardson, an investigator reached out to the National Crime Information Center to request a criminal history of Richardson.
An arrest report shows that Richardson was arrested in 1994, accused of lewd and lascivious assault on a child. For that 1994 crime, Richardson was sentenced to 9 months in jail – followed by 2 years of community service.
The report says the victim had become pregnant by Richardson.
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As of Monday evening, Richardson remains in jail with a bond set at $250,000 for the 1989 case.
Action News Jax’s Law and Safety Expert Dale Carson weighed in on if a statute of limitations applies in this case.
“If the person reports the events when they are 18 or older – so all these years have transpired in the past and now they’ve reported it when they’re 18 – the state is still able to prosecute the case,” Carson said.
But there is difficulty there with so much time having passed.
“As time progresses, witnesses die,” Carson said. “They don’t remember things correctly. Evidence fails, and it goes away. So, it’s difficult for both the prosecutor’s office and the defense’s office to protect and make certain that justice prevails.”
An arrest warrant was obtained for the suspect and he was subsequently taken into custody on Tuesday, October 4, 2022. As a result of the suspect having access to children during the time frame when the incident occurred, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office believes there is a possibility that additional victims exist.
— Jacksonville Sheriff's Office
If you have any information pertaining to the suspect or potential victims, you are asked to contact the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office at 904-630-0500 or JSOCrimeTips@jaxsheriff.org. To remain anonymous contact Crime Stoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.
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