Man gets 12 years in prison for rape

PORT CLINTON — A Port Clinton man accused of raping a child was sentenced to prison Wednesday.A grand jury indicted Ronald Harper, 64, on one count of rape, a first-degree felony, in November. He originally pleaded not guilty but changed his plea this week.The charge stemmed from an investigation dating back to August 2016. Harper allegedly forced a 4-year-old girl to perform sexual acts on him, according to an Ottawa County sheriff's report. Harper was apparently babysitting the victim.Under Ohio law, Harper could've faced life-imprisonment if found guilty because of the victim's age.His jury trial was scheduled to begin next Tuesday, but on Wednesday, an additional charge of attempted evidence tampering, a fourth-degree felony, was added."He attempted to destroy journal entries before we got to them," Ottawa County prosecutor James VanEerten said.The journal entries apparently contained some form of an apology, but allegedly didn't constitute an admission of guilt.Harper pleaded guilty to the tampering charge. He also changed his original plea and pleaded guilty to the rape charge after the offense was amended. The prosecution removed the possibility of life imprisonment.The guilty plea ultimately kept the victim from having to relive the trauma in a courtroom because a trial was no longer needed."My job is to balance the punishment of the offender with the wishes and protection of the victim and their family," VanEerten said. "The victim was very young at the time and she was our only witness. After talking with the family, we decided it was in her best interest to not force her to testify." Common pleas court Judge Bruce Winters sentenced Harper in Ottawa County to the maxim prison sentence of 11 years for rape and 18 months for attempted tampering. The sentences will be served consecutively for a total prison term of 12-and-a-half years.The court reasoned consecutive sentences were necessary because of the seriousness of Harper's conduct and "the danger (he) poses to the public," according to court documents.Harper is required to register as a Tier III sex offender. He will serve his prison term at the Lorain Correctional Institute.More Ottawa County Sheriff's Office articles Reach reporter Michael Harrington at michaelharrington@sanduskyregister.com, follow the Register at Facebook.com/SanduskyRegister