GaffinManchester man sentenced to life without parole, with right to appeal –

The three-day trial of a 43-year old ended on Thursday, June 16 with the eight woman, four man jury finding Kevin Gaffin guilty on all charges of rape, sexual battery, and felonious assault.
The trail began on Tuesday, June 14 and concluded on Thursday, with the jury deliberating around an hour before returning with their guilty verdict, concluding an investigation that began a year ago when Gaffin was indicted in July of 2015 and released on $50,000 bond. The trial had been delayed by various court motions and filings and Adams County Common Pleas Judge Brett Spencer recused himself from the case and was replaced by visiting judge Rocky Coss. Gaffin requested a new attorney in October of last year, causing another delay, and eventually he was represented Aaron Haslam. In January, the trial was delayed again when Adams County Prosecutor David Kelley asked for a special prosecutor and the state was represented by Special Prosecuting Attorneys Scott O’ Reilly and Darren Miller.
Three days of deliberation resulted in the jury returning the guilty verdicts with Gaffin being found guilty of Count I, Rape; Count II, Rape; Count III, Rape; Count IV, Sexual Battery; Count V, Rape; Count VI, Sexual Battery; and Count VII, Felonious Assault. Counts I, III, and V are each a first degree felony with an additional finding that the victim was under the age of 10 years at the time of the offense , while Counts II, IV, and VI are each second degree felonies with an additional finding that that the victim was under the age of 13 at the time of the offense. Count VII is a second degree felony.
After the guilty verdicts on Thursday, sentencing was held at 10 a.m. on Friday at the Adams County Courthouse. At that time, the state elected to have the defendant sentenced on the Rape convictions and the Felonious Assault. On Count I, the Court ordered a sentence of Life Without Parole, on Count III a sentence of Life Without Parole, and on Count V a sentence of Life Without Parole. On Count VII, it was ordered that the defendant serve a prison term of eight years, with the sentences to be served consecutively to each other. The defendant was also classified as a Tier II Sex Offender/Child Victim Offender. Gaffin has the right to appeal as required by Criminal Rule 32 (B).
After the sentencing, Gaffin was reprimanded into the custody of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.