Father jailed for beating pregnant daughter after she refused abortion
BY DUSTIN SIGGINS LifeSiteNews.com
A 36-year old Ohio man has been sentenced to 12 months in prison after pleading guilty to fifth-degree domestic violence, a felony, for beating his then-17-year old daughter after she told him she did not want to have an abortion.
In June 2013, Brian Schultz took his daughter, then several months pregnant, to an abortion clinic to set up an appointment for an abortion. After the daughter said she wanted to keep the child, Schultz and his wife, 41-year old Renee Schultz, began striking her.
Moments after his daughter testified against him on Thursday, Schultz pled guilty to the felony charge. Thecharges were dropped against his wife because the victim wanted her to be able to take care of the family's two younger girls.
Assistant Prosecutor Lorrain Croy told LifeSiteNews that "this indictment was for felony five domestic violence." While "domestic violence is a first degree misdemeanor on a first offense, with a possible 12 month sentence in the local jail," a victim's pregnancy "enhance[s]" charges "to a fifth degree felony, with 6 months mandatory incarceration and up to total of 12 months incarceration,” she said.
Croy said the trial began on June 4, and Schultz pled guilty after his daughter concluded her testimony. "The judge sentenced him to 12 months and his bond was revoked and he was taken into custody. He was delivered to the prison on June 6, 2014,” she said.
The couple was held on $50,000 bond per person for two days last year after charges were filed.
Ohio has laws outlining crimes against the unborn, but Croy said that fetal laws did not apply for two reasons. The first was that, despite victim testimony that she was struck in the face and stomach,"the injury was to the victim -- the daughter. She had bumps and bruises on her face and arms. There was NO injury to the baby."
Croy noted that the baby was born healthy and full-term on December 20, 2013. “The baby is doing well and thriving. The victim is healthy but suffers emotionally from this violence,” she said.
The other reason was the extent of the injuries. "Had there been more serious injury, the charges would have been more severe," explained Croy.
It appears that the victim protected her baby from the strikes to her stomach, which left bruising on her arms, but not her stomach.
"There is a family history of violence between the parents," Croy told LifeSiteNews. "The mother was convicted of falsification for claiming the last time that Brian Schultz was charged with domestic violence, she lied. Law enforcement then charged her with falsification and she was found guilty. Thereafter, the domestic charges against Brian were dismissed."
"The tragedy is the broken relationships between the victim and her own mother and the victim’s younger two sisters," said Croy. She said that "the family has ex-communicated the victim, and the mother and family members of Brian are attacking the victim’s character with false allegations and lies." This is happening despite how "the victim helped take care of the two sisters for many years in the home as the mother worked to support the family,” she said.
"Brian Schultz was unemployed with no indication of disability or other reasons why he wouldn’t work," said Croy. "The victim would get her sisters ready for school and help them in the afternoons. Such a sad loss for the victim."
"I spent a great deal of time with the victim and I have no doubt as to her veracity, sincerity, physical and emotional injury that she has suffered from her father, and the grief she suffers from the loss of the relationship with her own sisters."