Jury convicts Bluffton man of sexual abuse against young girls; he gets decades in prison
A jury found a Bluffton man guilty on Wednesday of sexually abusing two minors in 2019 after less than an hour of deliberation.
John Thomas Basile, 65, of Bluffton was convicted Wednesday on four counts of criminal sexual conduct in the first degree, according to a press release from the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office. Basile had pleaded guilty to two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct before the proceedings began, according to the press release.
In South Carolina, criminal sexual conduct in the first degree is a felony and carries a prison sentence of up to 30 years, according to the S.C. Code of Laws. Third-degree sexual conduct involves “aggravated coercion,” and “sexual battery,” according to the legislature, and is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
In 2019, a 5-year-old girl told a relative about the abuse she and an 8-year-old girl experienced, according to the press release. That relative then took both girls to Coastal Carolina Hospital where, the press release says, they told social services and law enforcement officials what happened. When Basile was first brought in for questioning by law enforcement, he denied the allegations, according to the press release. He later confessed to the crimes and to taking photographs of the girls.
“The girls’ recollection of these multiple events has been very specific, detailed and has remained consistent throughout this whole process,” said Julie Kate Keeney, who prosecuted the case. “The details these girls shared are not age-appropriate things a 5-year-old and an 8-year-old should know about.”
Basile will serve 25 years for criminal sexual conduct with a minor in the first degree and 15 years for one count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct concurrently, according to the press release. He will serve 10 years for the second third-degree charge, totaling 35 years.
If you or someone you know has been affected by sexual assault, help can be reached at the National Sexual Assault Hotline at (800) 656-4673
