Today, Louisa County Commonwealth's Attorney Tom Garrett announced the conviction of Julian Martin, 54, of Henrico, for soliciting a 13-year-old over the internet for sex.
The case was scheduled for a jury trial this morning but instead the defendant appeared and plead guilty without an agreement.
Since its inception, Louisa's Child Safety Initiative (CSI-Louisa) has worked to crack down on sexual predators. Julian Martin is the fourth conviction this year and four other cases are pending.
Recently, a Louisa jury recommended a 14 year sentence for former Howard University Soccer Coach Joseph Okoh after he violated the same law.
Louisa's initiative takes a proactive approach, policing the internet to catch those who prey on children.
The Louisa County Sheriff's Office in conjunction with the Commonwealth's Attorney make protecting children a top priority.
Over the last year, their collective efforts have resulted in convictions of predators from Henrico, Arlington, Virginia Beach and Bowling Green.
Ironically, no past or pending cases involve predators from Louisa itself.
Chief Deputy Commonwealth's Attorney Rusty McGuire notes that the fight to protect children in continues. "We know that these predators will travel, often hours, this level of motivation only causes us to redouble our efforts.
Predators are serving decades in prison but the fight is not over."
In today's case, Julian Martin used an AOL chat for the Richmond metro area to solicit a 13-year-old female. After talking about bringing beer and wine for the teen, the conversation turned explicitly sexual.
Martin asked the teen if she became "frisky" after drinking, asking to meet at a Louisa area business.
He arrived with alcohol, and stated that he planned to take the child "on a date." Instead of a 13 year-old girl, Martin was met Louisa Sheriff's deputies and has remained in jail since his arrest on July 2, 2008.
"If I'd have known it was a set-up, I wouldn't have driven out," Martin stated in an interview with detectives.
Rusty McGuire added, "Another predator is off the street. The Department of Justice estimates that there are 50,000 more predators online at any moment.
Education is the first line of defense. When that doesn't happen, children remain vulnerable.
We have made it our mission to protect the most vulnerable among us. If you attempt to exploit children in Louisa, you will be brought to justice."
Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) is one of four prongs of the CSI-Louisa initiative.
Others include proactive monitoring of registered sex offenders, a resource website, and an education component developed by Garrett and McGuire targeted at youth, parents, and educators recognized as among the nation's best.
Martin will be sentenced in June.
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