Man pleads no contest to rape of 5-year-old and is sentenced to only 90 days of house arrest

People have expressed disbelief after a man pleaded no contest to the rape of 5-year-old and was sentenced to only 90 days of house arrest.

 

79-year-old Lyle Burgess, a California businessman, was sentenced Wednesday to just 90 days of house arrest and five years of informal probation after pleading no contest to statutory rape of a child who was only 5 years old. He also does not have to register as a sex offender, according to KTXL.

 

Family attorney Ken Meleyco said:

A 5-6-year-old little girl was molested. Normally the sentence is state prison and then when you’re released, you have to register as a sex offender.

 

Meleyco added:

They trusted this man, he was a family friend, and he took advantage of them.

 

Meleyco says the sex assault happened after the family was invited over to Burgess’ Calaveras County cabin back in 2016.

Meleyco said of the girl, who is now 7:

The girl is not doing good. She’s showing all the symptoms of somebody who’s been molested. She’s in counseling, and she’s gonna be in counseling all her life.

 

The girl and her family has filed a civil suit against Burgess.

 

KTXL reached out to Deputy District Attorney Kathy Murray, to find out why Burgess was charged with just statutory rape and why he wouldn’t have to register as a sex offender. But Murray deferred a media person, who said to put any questions in writing online and has yet to respond.

 

Meanwhile, social media users are outraged at the light sentence Burgess received and have pointed out that Bill Cosby, 81, was sentenced to jail for sexual assault while Burgess gets only 90 days of house arrest for rape of a minor and will not register as a sex offender.