Published: August 21, 2008 11:38 pm      

Jurors unable to reach verdict

Deadlock in man’s sex abuse trial

GREENUP — A Greenup Circuit Court jury was unable to reach a verdict Wednesday in the trial of a South Shore man accused of sex crimes against a young boy.

Jurors in the case against Derek L. Felty deliberated for about eight hours Tuesday and Wednesday before informing Judge Bob Conley that they were hopelessly deadlocked. Conley declared a mistrial.

Felty’s attorney, William Palmer of Grayson, said the jury hung 11-1 in favor of acquittal.

Felty, 19, was indicted in January on charges of first-degree sodomy, first-degree unlawful imprisonment, first-degree wanton endangerment and first-degree sexual abuse. The indictment alleged Felty engaged in “deviate sexual intercourse” with a child under 12 though the use of forcible compulsion on Oct. 18 of last year.

According to Palmer, the alleged victim in the case is the son of a woman Felty was living with at the time of the alleged incident. The boy was 3 at the time Felty was alleged to have abused him, he said.

Felty’s trial began Aug. 11, but was recessed until Tuesday after Conley granted a motion by prosecutors to amend the indictment to amend the date on which the offenses allegedly occurred.

Palmer said his client maintained his innocence and contended that allegations against him had been fabricated.

The crimes were originally alleged to have occurred on Oct. 18, 2006. Palmer said that he was able to prove that on that date, Felty had taken his car to his father to have it worked on and that the child had spent the entire day with relatives.

The amended indictment accused Felty of sexually abusing the youngster on Oct. 19 or Oct. 20. On those days, Palmer said Felty attended class at Morehead State University, where he was a freshman at the time.

While he was unable to document his class attendance for Oct. 19, Palmer said that his client took an exam in a math class on Oct. 20, which turned out to be the only grade he received for the semester.

The allegations against Felty surfaced more than a week after the alleged incident. The child reportedly told a relative Felty had sexually abused him.

Palmer said his client was relieved with the outcome of the trial. First-degree sodomy against a child under 12 carries a possible life sentence.

Felty could still be retried. The decision on whether to do so would be up to Greenup Commonwealth’s Attorney Clifford Duvall, who was attending a state prosecutor’s conference on Thursday and could not be reached for comment.

KENNETH HART can be reached at khart@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2654.