Man pleads guilty to burglary and attempted sexual abuse – The Andalusia Star-News

Derrick Dewayne Kelley, 41, recently pleaded guilty before District Judge Lex Short to third-degree burglary and attempted sexual abuse of a child under 12.

Derrick Dewayne Kelley

According to the Covington County District Attorney, the charges against Kelley are based on two separate incidents.

In January 2021, he was charged with third-degree burglary after illegally entering an acquaintance’s apartment in the early morning hours and stealing her wallet.

Later, in the summer of 2021, Kelley was staying in an apartment with a woman and her 11-year-old child when he attempted to touch the child under her clothing. Although the child immediately told his mother what Kelley had done, her mother did not report the crime to authorities. It was not until the child returned to school in the fall that the incident was reported and investigated. Due to the delay in reporting, it was initially unclear where the crime against the child had occurred, and the investigation was conducted jointly by the Covington County DHR, the Covington County Sheriff’s Office, and the Andalusia Police Department.

The child’s mother was also charged with endangering the welfare of the child for failing to report the crime and for failing to keep Kelley away from the child after she learned he had attempted to sexually abuse her, according to the district attorney.

Kelley was sentenced to 16.5 years in prison for each conviction. Assistant District Attorney Grace Jeter, who prosecuted the cases, thanked the Covington County Sheriff’s Office, Andalusia Police Department, Covington County DHR and the Covington County Child Advocacy Center for their investigation into Kelley’s case.

“Shortly after I took office, we were able to open a child protection center here in Covington County,” District Attorney Walt Merrell said after the guilty plea. “In the years since, our ability to investigate child abuse reports as a team has greatly increased our success rate in prosecuting perpetrators of crimes against ‘the least of these.’ Because this child’s mother did not report what had happened to her, any tangible evidence that might have existed was lost before the investigation began. Despite this, and largely thanks to the forensic interviewing at CAC, we were able to send Derrick Kelley to prison for this crime, as well as the unrelated burglary. I appreciate the hard work of CAC Director Mindy Barton, who conducts the lion’s share of the forensic interviews of children, and the men and women who work on our multidisciplinary team that investigates reports of child abuse.”

Jeter, a 20-year prosecutor who has prosecuted child abuse cases throughout her career, added, “Summer vacation can be a time when children are more vulnerable to sexual assault, but it is not uncommon for these crimes to go unreported until children return to school, where they often confide in a teacher or friend. Even though her mother had done nothing to protect her, this child continued to tell what Kelley had done to her. Her courage and the dedication of our multidisciplinary team in investigating child abuse are the reasons Derrick Kelley pleaded guilty. He is in prison where he belongs.”