Published: August 19, 2008 11:49 am         

Trail date set for Caudill

Faces rape and sodomy charges

Almost five months after her husband was sentenced to 20 years in prison for having sex with a 12-year-old, Donna Caudill will go to trial for allegedly helping him.

Caudill, who is charged with four counts of complicity to commit incest, two counts of complicity to commit sodomy and two counts of complicity to commit second-degree rape, appeared in Laurel Circuit Court Friday during which Judge Roderick Messer set the trial date.

According to Kentucky State Police Detective Stacey Anderkin, who investigated the case, Bryan Caudill had sex with the then 12-year-old victim multiple times between December 2006 and March 2007. Donna Caudill is accused of aiding her husband and also showing the victim obscene photographs. A Laurel County Grand Jury returned indictments against the couple in April 2007.

In April Donna Caudill pleaded guilty to complicity to commit rape and complicity to commit sodomy in exchanged for a five-year prison sentence. However, in July, the court rejected the plea agreement because of comments Donna Caudill made in the pre-sentence investigation and additional comments made during the sentencing hearing in which she denied the charges.

“She is quoted in the investigation as saying nothing happened and that this is part of a plot for her mother to get custody of the child,” Messer said during the sentencing hearing.

When Messer asked Caudill about the statements, she told the court she did not know what was happening but should have known and should have stopped it.

As a result, Messer ruled he could not accept the plea agreement an set the case for a pretrial hearing on Aug. 15.

Commonwealth’s attorneys said previously that if Donna Caudill is convicted on all counts, she faces 20 to 50 years or life in prison.

In February, Bryan Caudill pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree rape and second-degree sodomy. In May he was sentenced to 10 years in prison on each count, to be served consecutively. In addition, he agreed to testify truthfully if Donna Caudill’s case goes to trial.