Dallas Woman Speaks Out Against Sex Crime Plea Deals
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - A Dallas County woman is using an Internet radio show to advocate for a change in the way sex crimes are handled in court.
Resident Cherlynn Roseberry said she was stunned when Dallas County prosecutors offered her family member's attacker a shorter sentence to get him to plead guilty.
Roseberry said her family member was six-years-old when she was raped, but never received proper justice.
"Her innocence, so-to-speak, was taken," Roseberry said. "They never wanted to take the case to trial. Never."
The man responsible is her ex-husband Felton Roseberry. He was charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child and faced two years of trial delays.
Roseberry said a prosecutor called to say she was prepared to offer her ex-husband time served and the lesser charge of injury to a child if he pled guilty.
"I was livid," she said. "I was outraged."
Roseberry said she immediately protested, leading to a compromise: Five years in prison under the original charge. But her battle didn't end there. She recently called into a radio show when Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins was a guest.
"I take it personally when you call up here and you claim I haven't done my job. I've done my job. I've done my job," Watkins said during the show.
Roseberry responded with, "You are the boss. Who else am I gonna blame here? You are the boss."
During that interview, Watkins said his department is underfunded, and that if he had enough resources, he wouldn't have to offer as many plea deals.
Roseberry has since started her own Internet radio show to advocate for a change in the law.
"I want no plea bargaining allowed in any sex crime," she said. "Period."
Former prosecutor Mike Freden said plea deals have their place in the legal system. They assure convictions, and they lighten the courts' heavy caseloads.
"The system would be overwhelmed [without]," Freden said.
The Dallas County D.A.'s office said it could not discuss negotiations that lead to plea deals. A spokeswoman did claim that prosecutors were prepared to take the case to trial, but Roseberry's involvement made it almost impossible to put in front of a jury.
The D.A.'s office also said there was evidence Roseberry coached her granddaughter and had lied to police in the past about her ex-husband.
"I didn't coach her," Roseberry said. "I wasn't even there."
Roseberry added that she is determined to continue speaking out, to secure justice for other families.
