This Is How I Made A Sex Abuser Confess on Video!
Screenshots of confession video inside
A year ago, my sister and I turned in her husband for raping their daughter. A police officer told us prosecuting rape without physical evidence was an uphill battle. As a result, we were determined to capture his confession on camera. We succeeded, and the taped confession helped put him in prison. This is the story of how we convinced him to tell the truth.
How it Began
It all started on a cool summer morning in late August. My 13-year-old niece, Jaz, and my sister, Sis, woke me early to tell me a secret. Jaz’s father, Ted, was molesting her. The most recent sexual assault happened only two nights before she told us.
Half an hour later, Sis, Jaz, and I were in a room speaking to police and Child Protective Services. We learned that, without a confession, it would be Ted’s word against Jaz’s. I felt certain that I could convince Ted to confess. I asked a police officer if I could legally record Ted without his knowledge.
I learned that our state, South Carolina, was a two-party state. This meant that as long as one other person in the room had knowledge of the recording, the video would be admissible in court. Since Sis would be aware I was recording, we could move forward with our plan to get a confession.
Ted Confesses
Several hours later, Sis and I were alone at home. We prepared for Ted’s arrival from work.
Sis paced the front porch, chain-smoking and mentally preparing. She was still in shock but knew it was imperative to our plan that she act naturally. Only two weeks before, she and Ted celebrated the 15th anniversary of what she’d thought was a happy marriage. This was going to be difficult for her. She flicked her last cigarette butt and ground it flat under her heel.
Meanwhile, I positioned my phone on the side table to be aimed at Ted’s favorite spot on our couch. I pressed record when I heard his vehicle pull into the drive.
The wait for Sis and Ted to come inside felt much longer than the 3 minutes of silence recorded on the video. Finally, he walked across the living room to the couch.
Ted looked nervous when Sis said she needed to talk to him. He sat down slowly.
I glanced at the phone to be sure he was in the shot. He was. Sis looked at me, and I nodded. Sis sat in a chair opposite Ted and began to speak.
“Jaz told us that two nights ago, you came into her room when you thought she was sleeping. You pulled off her pajama bottoms, and put your fingers in her vagina.”
“EXCUSE ME?!!” he yelled. His face was tomato red. “I did not do that!”
Sis was crying, but her voice was strong, “We believe Jaz. You thought she was sleeping, but she was awake.
Don’t you dare call her a liar! You’ve done enough to hurt her.”
I piped in, “Look, Ted. We can either take care of this within the family or we can go to the police. Either way, we will take care of this.
This is your moment to not be a total jackass and at least admit you did it. If you don’t we are leaving right now and the next person who asks you will be a police officer.”
Ted was quiet for a moment. His face was red, and he was tearing up. He took off his glasses and polished them on his shirt.
“Did you do it?”
He took a breath, “Yes.”
Sis almost lost it then. We knew it was true, but everything had happened so fast it felt like a dream. Ted’s one-word response brought us crashing back to reality.
We talked to Ted for 30 minutes. He blamed alcohol for his actions and claimed he didn’t remember raping Jaz.
The most chilling part of the confession came when I asked him when he first felt sexual attraction to Jazmine. I was hoping that if he admitted to several instances of sexual assault that it would lead to more jail time.
“When she stopped looking like a baby and more like a girl.”
I had to remain calm which was difficult at this point. I asked, “Do you mean around 4 or 5?”
He responded, “More like 6 or 7.”
Sis stood up then. She walked to him and handed him her wedding ring. He broke into loud sobs.
In the end, Ted admitted on video that he sexually assaulted Jaz so many times that he couldn’t give us a number. He admitted to fondling her and putting his fingers in her.
Ted never admitted to brutally raping Jaz when she was 8-years-old. He claimed that he may have been so traumatized by his own actions that he blocked it from memory. Ted stuck to this story when he confessed again to Child Protective Services.
What Happened Afterward
It was 6 months before he was arrested. Another 6 months passed before he was tried for his crimes.
Ted’s lawyer blamed his traumatic childhood for his actions. His lawyer also mentioned that stress from work had caused Ted to act out of character.
The video confession clearly proved that Ted had regularly committed the crime of sexual assault for 8 years. However, Ted was only tried for the most recent sexual assault.
He received 12 years out of a possible 20-year sentence. The judge took into account that it was his first time being arrested. He also took into account Ted’s 20-year service record as an EMT and his 5 years as a police officer.
The lawyers offered a plea for a lesser crime but Jaz said she’d rather go to trial than accept the deal. Ted still chose to plead out, but Jaz got her say in court.
Jaz sat in the witness box. She looked tiny in the big courtroom.
She looked at Ted while she spoke,
“You won’t admit you raped me, but you and I know you did. You have ruined my childhood. I have nightmares every night. I tried to kill myself at Christmas.
You sit there crying about what you did? You deserve life in jail. You are a coward.”
Jaz marched away from the stand. She didn’t look back.
Note from the Author
Every piece I write concerning my niece, Jazmin, is written with her express permission. She feels no need to be ashamed and wants everyone to know her story. She hopes it will help other survivors.
