KOSCIUSKO — A Pierceton man was sentenced in the Kosciusko Superior 1 Court on Thursday, Aug. 30, for charges related to molesting a minor female.

Steven Ray Slabach, 35, 5241 E. Washington Road, Pierceton, was found guilty of sexual misconduct with a minor, a level 5 felony. 

According to the affidavit of probable cause, on Aug. 11, 2017, a caseworker with the Indiana Department of Child Services contacted the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department regarding claims that Slabach was molesting a minor female.

A KCSD officer met with the caseworker and the minor child. According to the affidavit of probable cause, the victim advised that Slabach was touching her inappropriately on a weekly basis.

The officer and the caseworker then spoke with Slabach, who admitted to touching the victim. Slabach reportedly said the touching gave him pleasure and he knew it was wrong.

Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Brad Voelz read the victim’s impact statement letter during court. The letter read, in part:

“I was in the fifth grade the first time Steven came into my bedroom and touched me inappropriately. I remember lying there in shock after he left my bedroom. I could not believe what had just happened and was unsure what to do. I remember asking myself if it was right or wrong that he had touched me that way. I was 10 years old. I’d never had a boyfriend or kissed a boy.”

In the letter, the victim reported losing her sense of self-confidence and fearing that Slabach might hurt her if she told her mother about the abuse. 

Voelz cited aggravating factors despite the fact that Slabach has no prior record of criminal history and claims to have led a law-abiding life.  

“I don’t think that’s true,” said Voelz. “I agree that he has no arrests. I agree that he’s never before been convicted of a crime, but if the court sentences him for what he did in August of 2017, then we know that he led almost a year and a half of an entirely criminal life.”

“The impact on the victim is greater because it was not an isolated incident,” Voelz stated. “By his own admission, he said it occurred from the spring of 2016 until late summer of 2017. That’s a year and a half of consistent abuse.”

“I will not make an argument with any blame shift or one that in any way diminishes the crime he committed,” said Slabach’s attorney, David Kolbe. 

“What I will say is that he has taken full responsibility,” said Kolbe, who pointed out that Slabach has submitted himself voluntarily to the Bowen Center for treatment.

Slabach spoke at the sentencing. He apologized to the victim and told Judge David Cates that he accepted full responsiblity.  

“I want to apologize for the destruction I’ve caused,” said Slabach. “I’m not okay with what happened. I want to continue to pursue a life of figuring out what went wrong.”

“The aggravating circumstances far outweigh the mitigating factors in this case,” said Cates, who sentenced Slabach to six years in the Indiana Department of Corrections. 

Cates gave Slabach five days of jail time credit. Slabach was ordered to have no contact with the victim, to register as a sex offender and to pay a $500 sex offender fee. Cates informed Slabach that he has the right to appeal the sentence, provided the appeal is filed within 30 days.