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	Jury Pushes for 11 Years in Prison for Minister Hawthorne Reed Jr. Was Convicted of Molesting a Young Girl Eight Years Ago By Shawna Morrison Roanoke Times June 24, 2008 http://www.roanoke.com/news/nrv/wb/166933 A Radford jury on Monday recommended that a minister spend 11 years in prison for molesting a young girl eight years ago. Hawthorne Reed Jr., 63, was convicted late Friday night of two counts of forcible sodomy and one count of aggravated sexual battery dating back to July 2000. The girl is now 16. She doesn't live in Virginia. The Roanoke Times does not name the victims of sex crimes. The girl testified Friday in Radford Circuit Court that she didn't tell anyone about the abuse until six years after it happened. The girl testified that the incidents happened at Reed's home as he put baby oil on her back. He took off her clothes and began kissing her, she said, then performed oral sex on her. When he stopped, she put her clothes back on and went to another room to watch TV as if nothing had happened, she said. The same thing happened the next day, she said. The jury on Friday also heard from Reed, who said he never inappropriately touched the girl. He said he doesn't know why she would make up the allegations. Friday's trial started at 9 a.m. and lasted until about 11 p.m. The jury took about two hours and 40 minutes to come to a decision about Reed's guilt. Because the trial ran so late into the night, Reed's sentencing hearing was scheduled for Monday morning. The jury took about an hour to settle on his sentence, Radford Commonwealth's Attorney Chris Rehak said. The jury recommended that he serve five years in prison on each of the sodomy convictions and one on the sexual battery conviction. In addition to the 11-year sentence, jurors also recommended that Reed be fined $5,000. He will be formally sentenced in September. Reed, who was pastor of First Baptist Church in Dublin until his trial, requested that he be granted bond, Rehak said. He said Reed testified again, telling the court that he had to take care of some personal affairs. Circuit court Judge Joey Showalter denied the request. Reed is being held in the New River Valley Regional Jail in Dublin. In a statement released after Monday's hearing, Rehak said he was pleased with the outcome of the trial and appreciated the jury's thorough consideration. "Proving child sex abuse cases can be difficult as the only evidence is often the testimony of a child," he said, "and as such evaluating these matters is not taken lightly." He said he planned to continue holding those who exploit children accountable for their actions.
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