Ex-Alabama cop who raped stepdaughter seeks release from jail after sentencing is delayed due to coronavirus
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA: The attorney for a former Alabama police officer who was convicted of raping his stepdaughter has petitioned the court seeking the release of his client until the sentencing hearing, which has been delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Pete Williston, 50, who was charged with first-degree rape last month in connection to crimes that happened when the victim was still a teen, was convicted by a jury after just 30 minutes of deliberation last month.
He had taken to the stand during his trial in his defense and admitted his behavior was "disgusting and inappropriate" but insisted the sexual relationship he had with his stepdaughter was the result of a mutual agreement. The defense similarly suggested that the sex was consensual because the victim was 16 at the time.
Williston said it began after the victim approached him in the Spring of 2010 about a problem she was having at school and he agreed to "assist" her in any sexual needs she had. If the victim had sex with him, he said, she wouldn't have to worry about school.
He said they had "normal, standard" sex and did not use any sex toys or devices, or even have oral sex. He claimed the relationship lasted until the Fall of 2010, which was when she told him her "problem" was solved and she didn't want to continue.
However, the prosecution pointed out that she was 14 when the rapes began and successfully argued that the case met the criteria of forcible compulsion by highlighting Williston's position as a father-figure.
The stepdaughter, who is now a 26-year-old mother-of-three, also testified against Williston and revealed he engaged in multiple sex acts with her — usually two to three times a week — from 2008 through 2011.
She contested his claims and said the sexual abuse began several days after she and her then-boyfriend were alone in the basement and "things got serious." She said he forced her to break up with her boyfriend and told her he wanted to have sex with her so she "wouldn’t have sex with other people and get pregnant."
Following the verdict, Williston, who had been out on bond pending trial, was immediately taken into custody. His sentencing was scheduled for April 3 but has since been pushed back to at least April 16 because of the novel coronavirus that saw all hearings postponed statewide.
"Because of his current confinement and his prior position as a police officer, (Williston) is in solitary confinement and in a cell for 23 hours of the day," his attorney Scott Harwell wrote in his motion to have Williston freed from jail.
Harwell said that, if released, the former police officer would live with his wife and two children in Kimberly and would agree to house arrest as well as electronic monitory.
The attorney wrote that he spoke with Williston's mother, who said her son "is in good mental spirits and they would even improve if he could return home until after sentencing." He also wrote that "in the two lengthy conversations counsel had with the defendant, he did not appear to be a risk to harm himself."
A judge is yet to rule on the motion.