HARRISBURG, PA. — A Harrisburg man gets ten years of probation and is required to register under Pennsylvania’s Megan’s Law for life. Marvin Brummell pleaded guilty to indecent assault of a child and corruption of minors on Monday.
In 2012 Dauphin County Children and Youth were at the 10 year-old victim’s home when the she told the caseworker that Brummell had been assaulting her.
An investigation into the victim’s allegations resulted in charges against Brummell.
Earlier this year, in March, the court case ended in a mistrial. After Brummell’s guilty plea, Chief Deputy District Attorney Sean M. McCormack stated, “The victim in this case was extremely relieved that Mr. Brummell finally, after five years of denials, admitted to the truth.” Brummell’s guilty plea came after a plea agreement was worked out to spare the victim from having to testify.
McCormack explained the reasoning behind why a plea agreement was reached in this case. “Jury trials in child sexual abuse cases take an incredible toll on victims. The stress of testifying in front of one’s abuser is a heavy burden to put on a child. Whenever we can work out a plea agreement that spares a victim from the burden of testifying, but still holds an abuser accountable, it is worthwhile to explore that option.” But McCormack cautions, “It is of paramount importance that the victim and his or her family have a say in how a case is resolved.” In this case, the victim and her family were consulted and agreed that the plea agreement was in the victim’s best interests. “The most important factor to her was that Brummell admit to sexually molesting her. On Monday he finally did that.”
