By HEATHER PYLES, Staff Writer
Somerset — A trial date has been set in the case of a former Pulaski County Sheriff’s deputy who was accused last year of having sexual contact with his young daughter.
Russell Burton, 44, of Somerset, who pleaded no guilty in December to 10 counts of first-degree sexual abuse and one count of sodomy, will see his case go to trial on May 13, 2009.
Burton appeared before Judge Jeffrey T. Burdette in Pulaski Circuit Court on Thursday, Jan. 15.
Those charges, handed down by a Pulaski County Grand Jury in October, stem from allegations that Burton sexually abused his daughter sometime in 2003 and after that. The complaint also alleges that the victim was under 12 years old when the incidents took place.
Burton, who retired from the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department a little more than three years ago, was originally charged with one count of first-degree rape, two counts of incest, one count of sodomy and 10 counts of first-degree sexual abuse in early July.
Burton had also served as a volunteer firefighter with the Parker’s Mill Fire Department and he ran for 5th District Magistrate in 2006, and he served as a part-time bailiff at the Pulaski County Courthouse. He was suspended without pay from that position when the charges came to light. He is also a former chairman of the Pulaski County Fire Commission.
A defendant found guilty of first degree sexual abuse when involving a victim under 12 years old, a Class C felony, would be facing between five and 10 years in prison for each count.
A first-degree sodomy conviction with a victim under 12 years old calls for a sentence of 20 years to life.
Under the applicable statutory caps, Burton could be sentenced to life in prison with no parole eligibility until he served 20 years. Upon being released, he would have to undergo a three-year conditional discharge, undergo therapy, and register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
