Iraq war vet sent to prison for sex with 12-year-old
By Brad Bauer, bbauer@mariettatimes.com
POSTED: June 5, 2008
Article Photos
Before the start of his 8 a.m. sentencing hearing, Brandon Hall, 23, of 912 Park St., fought back tears as he hugged each of the 12 family members and friends who appeared to show their support at the hearing.
Hall faced as much as 10 years in prison after he pleaded guilty May 2 to first-degree felony rape of the girl he met last year at the Waterford Fair. Hall did not force the girl into the acts, but because of the child’s age she was unable to legally consent, police said.
The child’s parents found the girl in bed with Hall at his residence. Hall’s attorney, Rolf Baumgartel, said Hall was highly intoxicated and has no recollection of the incident.
Hall apologized for the incident and said he voluntarily sought alcohol and mental health counseling while he was in the military. When he tested positive for alcohol at one of the meetings, he was given a “less-than-honorable discharge,” he said.
“It is quite convenient for the military,” Baumgartel said, noting the discharge leaves the government free from paying for treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder or alcohol dependency problems.
Baumgartel said Hall faced heavy combat and had several friends killed while serving. He said Hall turned to drinking to cope with the trauma.
Hall said he wanted to contact the family of the victim to apologize. Neither the victim nor anyone in her family was present for the hearing.
“I do feel remorse, your honor,” Hall told Washington County Common Pleas Court Judge Susan Boyer. “I wish the family an apology. Since day one I wanted to say I was sorry, but I wasn’t allowed to contact them.”
Assistant Washington County Prosecutor Kevin Rings recommended a five-year sentence, but Boyer opted for a four-year prison term, noting the former Marine had a minimal criminal record, consisting of a drunk driving offense and a resisting arrest charge.
Boyer also labeled Hall a Tier III sex offender, meaning the man will have a lifetime reporting requirement with the local sheriff’s office upon his release from prison.
Rings said Hall had not been back from his tour in Iraq for very long before the incident occurred.
Member Comments
View Comments: | 1-25 |26-41 | Post a comment
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alchemy
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06-07-08 7:36 PM
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LoL, so mariettaexpat the old women being raped by a 200 pound 12 year old boy needs to ask for an ID first? Also mariettaexpat apparently you think a 60 year old reprobate kidnapping a 3 year old and commiting rape is better since you do not appear to make a distinction? Hey guess what. Judge Ed Lane backs you on that one. He thinks that a 60 year old and a 3 year old is better than an 18 year old and a 12 year old who claimed to be in love. I just find it amazing to no end how you justify things in your own mind. Does "pat" mean patrolman?
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MariettaExPat
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06-07-08 7:21 AM
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I get it. You think that confirming -- truly confirming -- a partner's age before you have sex with them is wrong. As an adult, you have an absolute duty to not have sex with minors. Be careful rounding up the 10-15 year olds, guessing their weight, and sleeping with them. You will be the next Brandon Hall.
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alchemy
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06-06-08 6:27 PM
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MariettaExPat, I want to have you as an example in the supreme court. Your view is why the laws as they are used are wrong and its the main reason for the laws to begin with. Even after being made aware there are 12 year olds who pass as adults you still dont believe it. Even I was tricked by that belief. I could round up 5, 10-15 year olds in one day and you would have no clue how old they are but you would assumed they were 18-25 unlesss you have some ability others dont like the weight guessers at fairs. Even more, if she has a fake ID he is still charged with the same crime. If a 12 year old 200 pound boy rapes an old women. The old women is charged with the same crime according to the law. You people just dont get it!
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alchemy
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06-06-08 6:16 PM
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Bottom line 1)He was convicted and will have a record for life for "child rape." That is a lie. Rape is rape. Liars change definitions. The system is a liar. 2) No man can be labeled in the future for something he did in the past. True repentance makes a person not even that person anymore. Whem you judge as such you judge christ, period! 3) Only heathen nations had prisons in the bible and they dont work. No one wins against truth, not even America. America is losing rapidly!
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alchemy
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06-06-08 6:09 PM
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parrothead, "Boy, some of us think an awful lot of ourselves don’t we!" I'll let you crawl around it that but dont you think I can laigh inside because I know the truth? After all, Im me. Try thinking a little wider for a change Is that the only thing my statement could mean?
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alchemy
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06-06-08 6:03 PM
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Mr wilsom you are not able to get it. No hard feelings. You pledge allegiance and salute your flag for a reason. BECAUSE IT WORKS! To others I will explain, I never said all get a glimpse outside the matrix. I think most dont. And no wilson Im not talking about seeing their dead buddies, Im talking about seeing their dead buddies and realizing you did it! Government worshippers murder their own by their ignorance and following the "good ole american way" no matter what "way" that happens to be at the time.
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alchemy
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06-06-08 5:50 PM
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mttamama, no, its just that some arent cowards and stand in the truth. Any coward can go along with the crowd. Obviously things like this are increasing and the crowds wat isnt working is it? Maybe there is something the crowd doesnt get? Maybe there is something the crowd doesnt want to get?
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Darby1952
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06-06-08 2:19 PM
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The point isn't if the young lady wanted to have sex with him or not,,,, the point is he an adult and should have known better. As for being a Marine, if he is still active duty, God help him when the Corps gets done with him.
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MariettaExPat
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06-06-08 10:59 AM
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ReallyNowAreYouKiddinMe, Hall's problems started when he went to the middle and high school to see how the young girls acted. The last thing I am going to do is follow your advice and watch pre-teen girls at the mall, town, and baseball fields. If you cannot tell the difference between an adult woman and a 12-year-old girl, I suggest you follow the same rules as store clerks: if she appears to be under 25, check her id.
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mttamama
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06-06-08 9:25 AM
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I understand girls dress, act, and look older. Society especially judging from these posts wants and allows that from these little girls. It is and "adult" responsability to know what you are doing and to not sleep with children. That's why it's called rape and that's why he's going to prison-
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ReallyNowAreYouKiddinMe
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06-06-08 9:19 AM
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Maybe some of you people need to go to the middle school and the highschool and see for yourself how some of the (not all) but the majority of these young girls dress and act now adays.,,,, if your girls are still under 10, maybe you are clueless to what is going on... ask some school officials.. I dare to say you would be surprised at some of our young ladies..I did not say is was all the girls fault earlier... only stating,, young girls behave and dress older now adays,,, and it is hard to tell them apart, let alone if you are drinking... stand around the mall,,town, baseball fields......... just look for your self,, be educated about our society,,, boys still dress like boys.. girls.. well,,, you just take notes for yourself,, I am glad I didnt have girls........
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MrWilson
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06-06-08 9:09 AM
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continued...Your rhetoric is shameful and really sheds a bad light on the great people of the Mid-Ohio Valley.
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MrWilson
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06-06-08 9:08 AM
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Alchemy...what a crock. You spew sentences out that confirm your idiocy. Lifetime govt worshipper? Just because I chose to stay in the service of my country you label me a "lifetime govt worshipper"? You have no idea what you are talking about. Really. And to elevate yourself up to a level of "those in the truth" makes me sick. Get your facts straight before confirming your uneducated views. You said "The sad thing is most who get a glimpse outside of the matrix cant handle it and are quickly destroyed by it."...did you know a majority of our gov't officials, our state governors, and CEOs of Fortune 500 companies have served this country in the military? Doesn't sound like they were destroyed by the matrix. Give us some credit...we are just like everyone else. We have a job to do, then we go home to our families, we worry about the future, we save for our kids college, we work second jobs, and we worship in local churches on Sundays. Your rhetoric is sham
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mttamama
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06-06-08 8:58 AM
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As I mentioned before this guy already had a criminal record...I am terrified of my girls getting older with a community response like I am seeing on this post to blame the girl. No wonder Washington County has so many sex offenders. It looks like people are pretty sick to support this guy. Try blaming the guy and his family instead of the 12 year old , her parents and alcohol, military etc.. really you people are sick.
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MrCoastie
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06-06-08 8:11 AM
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Seems pretty convient, to me, to blame the Government for this young mans mistake! He was too drunk to figure out she was 12? Sorry, that spells COP OUT to me. I've seen friends and family pass and I don't need a bottle to console me.
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MariettaExPat
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06-06-08 7:38 AM
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Blaming a 12 year old for enticing a 23 year old man to sleep with her is disgusting (ReallyNowAreYouKiddinMe, Alchemy, Armywife1106, GetReal). Anyone who says a 12 year old can pass off as an adult is disillusioned. What did a 23 year old man and a 12 year old girl have in common to talk about? Within the first half hour he would have realized she was still in middle school. He knew he was having sex with a 12 year old when he did it.
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Parrothead
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06-06-08 1:25 AM
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alchemy 06-05-08 11:24 PM “they are apparently deleting posts. myself and someone named oxnard had two of the most insightful posts Ive seen….” Boy, some of us think an awful lot of ourselves don’t we!
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alchemy
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06-05-08 11:39 PM
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getreal, they judge and support the government no matter what. They are government worshippers. Which brings me to a suspicion I doubt any will understand except those in truth. I suspect that boy may have seen some things in Iraq, saw some truth, unlike lifetime government worshippers like wilson. The sad thing is most who get a glimpse outside of the matrix cant handle it and are quickly destroyed by it. Truth is the enemy and thats a real hard thing to get used to. Many just freak out and turn to alcohol, drugs, etc.
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alchemy
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06-05-08 11:31 PM
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good one, getreal
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alchemy
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06-05-08 11:24 PM
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they are apparently deleting posts. myself and someone named oxnard had two of the most insightful posts Ive seen on this subject which are not here now. There will never be understanding to this until you realize the mentality of some 12 year olds today. There are 12 year old girls who want to have sex and nothing will stop them. They are on talk shows etc. Some of them could pass for 25. What happens to the boy then? They get charged, imprisoned, and have mandatory life long persecution all under the same charge and title as if they were a 60 year old pervert with a 3 year old. They will even be treated the same, for life! Lies are counterproductive and all society pays.
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Armywife1106
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06-05-08 9:50 PM
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I don't care what anyone says, seeing your friend die and God only knows what else over there can change you. Not saying it could have made him do this but I would say if he was highly intoxicated then that had a huge part in sleeping wth a 12 year old! Like stated before, its getting harder nowa days to know a girls REAL age, parenting has alot to do that that too!
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hockeypuck
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06-05-08 9:43 PM
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Good idea, Parrothead. You may actually be realizing that a little pain may go a long way. Waterboarding is not too bad, though.
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GetReal
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06-05-08 9:21 PM
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I really understand all of the comments from the military persons. But I have one comment of my own. I know how the military programs all of their men & women to be " We are the military , no matter what happens we are military first, we push our problems to the back and do our duty." We owe alot to our military men & women but being in the military and seeing combat I wonder why none of you that are commenting can admit that war changes you. Is it not possible that maybe you could have developed a drinking problem or worse.Great, you did not have any adverse affects from having served and killed and seen people killed and can still be the same person inside with no vices whatsoever. The comments about the man using the miltary as an excuse are totally out of order.The problem stated is the alcohol abuse, which in turn left an inability to judge the age of a girl. Lets Get Real the age of girls now a days is getting harder to know. No more piggy tails & lollipops
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peppie
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06-05-08 8:29 PM
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Elizabeth, I have been on the front line and also had to do body identification of the deceased. I saw alot in Desert Storm and I think it is a weak excuse when anyone blames the military on their own faults. Maybe since you have never had any military experience, you don't know what you are talking about.
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peppie
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06-05-08 8:24 PM
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Oh my, war causes vet to commit crimes. Wrong! This person has no right to blame the military for his problems. This person is a pervert and I hope he gets a cell mate who will give him a dose of his own medicine. We real veterans are sick and tired of people using the military as an excuse for everything that goes wrong in their life.
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