Local mother speaks out against conviction of child molester

JOHNSON CITY, NY (WIVT/WBGH) – A Johnson City woman is appealing the conviction and sex offender designation of the man who raped her daughter.

On May 23, D’Antoinne Bethea of ​​Johnson City pleaded guilty to rape and received a 10-year suspended sentence.

Bethea admitted to sexually abusing a girl repeatedly over the course of nine years, from the time she was seven until she had sexual intercourse with her when she was 16.

A hearing was held in Broome District Court last month to consider Bethea’s classification as a sex offender.

The decision was made based on a points system, with Bethea receiving points for the type of sexual contact (intercourse and oral sex), the fact that multiple sexual acts occurred with the victim, and his criminal history.

In 2004, he was convicted of child endangerment for masturbating in front of neighborhood children.

He was ultimately classified as a Level 2 offender, one step below the more stringent Level 3.

The victim’s mother objected to the lower classification on the grounds that the court should have taken into account that he still lives next door and that there are children in the immediate vicinity of his home on Harrison Street.