A Newton County man convicted of molesting a child was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday, six years after the girl confided in a trusted adult at her school, prosecutors said.
Thomas Charles Stephens was found guilty of sexually abusing the child in a March 2017 incident at her home, which she disclosed at school the next day, according to the Newton County District Attorney’s Office. It was his second conviction for sex crimes against a child.
“These crimes did not occur in a school, but the initial outcry did,” DA Randy McGinley said in a statement. “Teaching and working in a school with our young children is a very difficult job and sometimes some terrible things that happen at home are brought to light at school. A big thank you as well to the teachers and counselors that brought these events to light.”
Stephens was arrested in May 2018. His wife, Kristyn Stephens, was arrested six months later after his case was presented to a grand jury, and she pleaded guilty to a first-degree cruelty to children charge in December 2019. She was also sentenced to five years in prison Wednesday, followed by 15 years on probation.
Prosecutors said Kristyn Stephens lied to law enforcement during the investigation and tried to get the child to say the crimes didn’t happen.
The child molestation case faced several delays before it made it to a bench trial, including the death of a judge and the coronavirus pandemic, the DA’s office said. On Wednesday, Thomas Stephens was convicted on one count of aggravated sodomy, one count of aggravated child molestation and two counts of child molestation.
According to prosecutors, he had a prior conviction of sexual battery against a child under the age of 12 in Florida, and was also convicted for failing to register as sex offender in Georgia.
Because of his prior felony convictions, he is not eligible for parole.
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