A twelve person jury needed only an hour and a half to return a unanimous guilty verdict against 55-year-old Morgan Ratley of Cut-Off for raping a teenager while the mother was restrained. Lafourche Parish District Attorney spokesperson David Melancon says the horrific incident happened in July of 2019.
“And after two days they were able to get away and contact law enforcement and Ratley was taken into custody and eventually prosecuted by our office,” said Melancon.
Melancon says Ratley was a live-in boyfriend of the mother and began sexually assaulting the teenage victim without the mother’s knowledge. He says the victim testified during the trial and delivered powerful testimony, describing the sexual abuse and fear she lives with at the hands of Ratley.
“The victim’s testimony remained consistent from the start it another changed, I mean we were all really amazed this young lady was able to show so much strength,” said Melancon.
The trial lasted three days and the victim has been described by prosecutors as an incredibly strong young lady. Melancon says evidence on the victim’s phone helped lead to a conviction.
“We were able to see cell phones where we were able pull explicit images of the victim off the the cell phone, we had DNA that we were able to collect,” said Ratley.
Ratley’s sentencing has been scheduled for October 19th. He faces a mandatory life sentence for 1st Degree Rape.
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