Waxahachie child predator sentenced to life for sexually abusing 4-year-old
WAXAHACHIE, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) — A Waxahachie man was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison on Thursday after a jury convicted him of sexually abusing a four-year-old girl.
Carlos Cruz Padron, 77, of Waxahachie, was previously convicted of Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child, a first degree felony.
In September 2019, according to court documents, Padron sexually abused the girl. She told her family about the abuse soon afterwards, and they reported it to police.
Officers with the Waxahachie Police Department found that Padron had admitted to sexually abused another young girl in the 1990s.
During the trial's sentencing phase, the jury heard testimony that Padron was a teacher and had been asked to resign from two different schools after allegations of inappropriate conduct with students surfaced.
They also heard testimony from an adult victim who Padron sexually assaulted in 2014. During cross examination by prosecutors, Padron was asked if he assaulted the woman. He replied, "I guess you can say that."
Prosecutors asked the jury for a life sentence in their closing arguments, to which they agreed.
In a statement, Ellis County District Attorney Ann Montgomery said:
"The bravery of these victims was validated today. Children are the most vulnerable members of our society and deserve the highest level of protection. This defendant spent his life taking advantage of that vulnerability. I am proud to say an Ellis County jury told him that conduct is worth a life sentence. Jury verdicts are the loudest voices of the community and, today, those voices shouted a warning to anyone who would abuse a child in Ellis County."
Padron was sentenced to the maximum punishment for Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child. He will spend the rest of his life in prison and fined $10,000.
