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Rapist Receives Multiple Life Sentences In Tarrant County

Anthony-Devern-Session
Anthony Devern Session (credit: Fort Worth County Jail)

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - A Tarrant County judge sentenced a convicted felon to multiple life sentences on Friday for sexually abusing his teenage stepdaughter and raping and shooting his next door neighbor, who miraculously survived.

In July Anthony Devern Session plead guilty to sexual assault of a child, aggravated kidnapping, unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, theft of a vehicle and aggravated sexual assault. He elected to have state district Judge Mollee Westfall assess his punishment after the completion of a pre-sentence investigation.

On Friday, after reviewing the results of that investigation and hearing arguments, Westfall sentenced Session to the maximum on every charge. She gave him three life sentences –- one for each of the sexual assault cases and one for the kidnapping case. Westfall also sentenced him to the maximum 20 years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm and two years in a state jail facility for theft of a vehicle. The Judge also assessed the maximum $10,000 fine on each of the five cases.

By law, the sentences must run concurrently. Session must serve 30 years before he is eligible for parole.

Prosecutors Tim Bednarz and Kelly Loftus prosecuted the case, which revealed that Session had been sexually abusing his teenage step-daughter; sometimes filming and photographing the assaults.

On October 17, 2012, the girl's mother discovered the images on Session's cell phone. She notified police and left Session's home with her daughter.

Later that day while Session was alone at his home, he lured his 30 year old next door neighbor over and held her at gunpoint for 24 hours, during which he sexually assaulted her multiple times and threatened to kill her.

The next evening, on October 18, 2012, Session shot the woman in the neck when she tried to escape. He then fled the scene in her vehicle.

A short time later, police stopped Session, who was still in possession of the gun, and arrested him.

The victim, meanwhile, underwent surgery to repair the jugular vein in her neck.

Session has previously served time in prison for kidnapping a woman in Abilene. He also has prior convictions for assaults.

(©2013 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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