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June 18, 2008

Local man stands trial for child molesting

By Drew Stone/The Lebanon Reporter

Lebanon — Trial proceedings began in the child molestation case of a Lebanon man.

Edward Brant, 40, had his first day in court Tuesday for his Class C felony charge of child molesting. His case is in Boone County Superior Court I.

The majority of the day was spent selecting the jury. Opening statements began about 2:45 p.m.

During opening statements both Boone County Prosecutor Todd Meyer and defense attorney Michael Gross said the circumstances regarding the case, and the people, are certainly not all that pleasant.

“This is the type of case no one wants to be a part of,” Meyer said. “But this is the type of case that is utterly important to this community.”

“When the dust settles on this case, you’re (the jury) not going to like any of the adults in this case,” Gross said.

It is the Reporter’s policy not to name victims of alleged crimes.

Meyer said the prosecution believes that while an 11-year-old girl was sleeping over at a friend’s house in the early-morning hours of Sept. 30, Brant snuck into the bedroom, lay down next to her and placed his hand between her legs. The girl then woke up, kicked Brant away and called her mother.

Gross argues that Brant mistakenly touched the girl believing she was a woman with whom he wanted to have sex. Gross said Brant had been drinking heavily earlier that night and attributed the mistake largely to Brant’s drunken state.

Police officers Kevin Stump and Rich Mount said Brant was arrested later that day without incident.

Both attorneys stated that Brant had been in the girls’ bedroom at least once before on that night. Meyer said Brant tried to lie next to the girl but she was awake and reacted, so he left the room.

Gross argued that Brant went in to check on the girls and simply pulled a blanket over the girl to keep her warm.

According to testimony and opening statements, the girls had planned to sleep over at the alleged victim’s home, however the family recently got a new dog that did not react well to the visitor, so they decided to sleep at the other girl’s home. The other girl’s mother was already out drinking with several friends, including Brant.

Stephanie Harshman was at the home, and it was Harshman, Gross said, that Brant thought he was following into the bedroom later that night. Harshman testified in court that Brant did show interest in her by way of making some “rude” comments about her body.

The case continues and may conclude today.

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