MOLESTER'S SENTENCE LONGER AFTER APPEAL.Byline: Michael Coit Daily News Staff Writer A Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. man whose sentence for unlawful sex with a minor had been reversed by a California California (kăl'ĭfôr`nyə), most populous state in the United States, located in the Far West; bordered by Oregon (N), Nevada and, across the Colorado River, Arizona (E), Mexico (S), and the Pacific Ocean (W). appeals court was sentenced Friday to two consecutive life terms plus 23 years in state prison after a jury found him guilty. Henry Arturo Diaz was sentenced in Ventura Superior Court on eight counts of molesting a 13-year-old girl. After a September trial, a jury found him guilty of the child-molestation charges. Diaz, 43, originally waived his right to a trial and pleaded guilty in October 1994 to four counts of child molestation Child molestation is a crime involving a range of indecent or sexual activities between an adult and a child, usually under the age of 14. In psychiatric terms, these acts are sometimes known as pedophilia. . He subsequently found himself the first defendant in Ventura County to be sentenced under California's ``three strikes, you're out'' law, and he received a term of 25 years to life plus six years. In January, the 2nd District Court of Appeal reversed the sentence. The higher court said the sentencing judge should have imposed three additional five-year prison terms stemming from three prior robbery convictions Noun 1. robbery conviction - conviction for robbery judgment of conviction, sentence, conviction, condemnation - (criminal law) a final judgment of guilty in a criminal case and the punishment that is imposed; "the conviction came as no surprise" . The appellate court A court having jurisdiction to review decisions of a trial-level or other lower court. An unsuccessful party in a lawsuit must file an appeal with an appellate court in order to have the decision reviewed. also said Diaz should have been allowed to withdraw his guilty plea before the 1994 sentencing. |
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