A 37-year-old man will spend the next 20 years in prison after a jury convicted him of repeatedly molesting a young girl.
The jury convicted Jonathan William Miller on Tuesday on two counts of child molestation. The jury took 10 minutes to reach a guilty verdict.
District Attorney Chris Arnt said Miller molested the girl over a period of several years - at first in Tennessee, and then in Georgia.
Arnt says Miller instructed the victim to lie about her abuse if anyone questioned her.
The victim finally told of Miller's abuse while she was living with a foster family, who encouraged her to report it to the Child Advocacy Center.
Miller had already been convicted of child molestation in 2003, according to Arnt.
Judge Brian Houser sentenced Miller to a total of 30 years, with the first 20 years to be served behind bars.
After Miller's conviction, the victim's guardian sent this email to the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney's Office:
This may have been one of the hardest things our family has ever had to do. However, I am eternally grateful for the employees and service of the Catoosa County District Attorney’s office. We are happy with the outcome and grateful that our justice system and the jurors found and served justice for our foster daughter. Thank you Mr. David Wolfe for an excellent job in court, Judge Brian House for sentencing and bringing a small little window of hope to this little girl, to Mr. Arnt and all the district attorneys who came to offer support and lastly to Mrs. Ashley Nicholson, Catoosa County DA child advocate for walking us through every step of this process and defining some of those big lawyer words that no one can possibly understand. Thank you all for finding justice for [the girl].