11-year sentence after child rape verdict

June 22--WENATCHEE -- An East Wenatchee man convicted in May of raping a child in his household more than 12 years ago received an 11-year prison sentence Wednesday.

Edward Lane Hart, 58, was found guilty in a jury trial May 25 of second-degree child rape and second-degree child molestation for sexually abusing the victim multiple times, while she was between the ages of 12 and 14. In an email to the court, the victim said she still lives with the aftereffects.

"I suffer from what happened to me in my work place, at home, in everyday life," she wrote. "... I really believe that he should get time for what he has done to me." She did not attend the sentencing.

Snohomish County Superior Court Judge David Kurtz, sitting in for Chelan County trial Judge T.W."Chip" Small, assigned Hart 132 months in prison, and barred him from contacting the victim for life. When released, Hart must serve three years on probation and register as a sex offender.

Hart's family lived in Wenatchee at the time of the rape. Police arrested him in April 2016 after the victim's disclosure. She had previously disclosed the abuse while in her teens, but adult members of her family did not believe her. At trial, relatives testified that Hart apologized to them in April 2013 for "molesting" the victim.

The jury deliberated for three hours at the end of the three-day trial before returning guilty verdicts against Hart. Jurors also classified his crimes as acts of domestic violence, a special verdict which enhanced his sentencing range. The sentence handed down by Kurtz is just three months shy of the 136-month maximum applicable under Hart's conviction. He has no prior felony convictions.

Reach Jefferson Robbins at 509-664-7123 or robbins@wenatcheeworld.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JRobbinsWW. Contact him securely by PGP key.

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