Appellate court upholds child rape conviction

TOLEDO — The Sixth District Court of Appeals this month upheld a conviction against Andrew Schee. Schee, 44, is serving a life sentence in line with eight counts of rape.During a jury trial that ended in June 2015, prosecutors presented testimony that Schee had repeatedly raped a young girl during a years-long period that began when the girl was 8 years old. Jurors learned that instances of abuse took place in Erie, Huron and Knox counties.Prosecutors leveled 17 counts of rape against Schee. Jurors convicted him of eight. Erie County Common Please Judge Roger Binnette sentenced him to two consecutive life sentences, as well as an additional 60 years in July 2015.Schee alleged multiple issues with his path through the court system in appealing his conviction. He challenged the judge's decision to allow testimony regarding "grooming," or behaviors that a perpetrator uses to prepare a victim for abuse, for example. He also argued that his indictment failed to "sufficiently apprise him of the distinguishable incidents for which he was accused."The appellate court responded individually to each issue that Schee raised in his appeal, as detailed in an opinion released this month. The appellate court ultimately found no error in the trial court's handling of the case.Schee remains in custody at the Lorain Correctional Institution, according to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.His ex-wife, Kimberly Schee, 45, is currently serving a three-year sentence for failing to intervene in the abuse of the girl. Kimberly Schee pleaded guilty in August 2015 to a felony child endangering charge.Register photo/ROBIN HECKER Andrew Schee is escorted out of the courtroom by Erie County Sheriff Deputies after being found guilty on eight counts of rape on Friday, June 5, 2015.