Local man on trial for child molestation

May 18--A Cherokee County jury heard testimony from a child Wednesday who alleged that her stepfather touched her and her younger sister inappropriately.

Charges were filed against Michael Lee Cowan, 61, in 2014, after he was reportedly caught on video fondling a 7-year-old girl.

During her testimony, the child said that in 2013, after her mother married Cowan, she was granted custody of the three children, and they lived in Pryor.

The child, 15, said that between May 2013 and May 2014, her mother would make her sit on Cowan's lap to give "goodnight hugs and kisses," when he would rub the insides of her legs.

She added that during one of those times, Cowan put his hand up her shirt, and on another occasion, he stuck his hand in her pants and began to rub her.

Assistant District Attorney Kathy Lahmeyer asked the girl where her mother was during those times.

"She would be in another room or gardening outside, or by the pond," the girl said.

Before moving to Tahlequah, the child testified, she told a school counselor that Cowan was touching her little sister, who then informed her mother.

"She yelled at me and called me a liar," she said. "She put soap in my mouth and told me to 'choke on it and die.'"

Prosecutor's also charged Cowan's wife, Nelia, for enabling child sexual abuse, but later dismissed the charges.

Court documents indicate Cowan propositioned the child in a "lewd or lascivious manner" in a bathroom by "asking her for a 'real kiss' and then placing her hand on his crotch." Prosecutors also say he tried to place his hands under the bed sheets of the child so he could touch her.

"He would tell me to open my legs," the child said. "I shared a room with my little sister and I was starting to get scared, so I would sleep with her in her bed. It wouldn't stop him."

Defense attorney Donn Baker asked the girl if she knew about his medical issues, potentially making it difficult for him to climb the stairs to get to her bedroom.

The 15-year-old said it didn't prevent him because he was, in fact, in her room.

Baker read through several DHS reports stating some of the testimony the girl was giving didn't precisely match previous reports and interviews, which addressed only what allegedly happened in the bathroom, and that she recorded him.

"I honestly just didn't want to write it, so I didn't put all the information in there," she said.

She confided in a friend, and once other classmates learned of the incidents, they urged her to record Cowan and show school officials what was happening.

Asking her little sister to sit on Cowan's lap, she used a portable Nintendo gaming system to make the recording and then took it to school and showed her teacher the next day.

Shady Grove School Principal Deborah Ferguson, who was a witness for the state, verified she was informed by the teacher and that she did see the video and contacted the Department of Human Services.

Cherokee County jurors also watched the short video, which appears to show Cowan holding a 7-year-old girl on his lap, touching her arms and legs.

If found guilty, Cowan could be charged with three felony counts of lewd or indecent proposals to a child under 16. Each count is punishable by three to 20 years in a state prison.

The trial will reconvene at 9 a.m. Thursday.

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