MARSHFIELD, Mo. (AP) – Two Amish brothers who were convicted of molesting a 13-year-old girl are headed to prison for 15 years for violating their probation.
The Springfield News-Leader reports that a small group of anti-sex abuse demonstrators picketed Thursday at the hearing in which a Webster County judge revoked the probation for Aaron Schwartz and Petie Schwartz, of Seymour.
The brothers previously had been ordered to complete five years probation with no prison time, so long as they had no contact with the underage victim in the case. They were also required to write letters of apology to the Amish community.
But Webster County Prosecutor Ben Berkstresser asked for a probation hearing in the controversial case late last month, citing a probation officer’s report that the men had contact with the girl at the center of the case.
The brothers’ Springfield defense lawyer, Will Worsham, argued that the events, if they took place, were a “technical” violation that didn’t warrant an immediate trip to prison.
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