Trial for Sedalia man accused of child molestation begins

A Pettis County jury listened to opening statements Tuesday in the trial of a Sedalia man charged with three counts of child molestation.

Frederick E. Doty, 71, was arrested in December and initially charged with eight counts of child molestation, each a class B felony carrying between five and 15 years imprisonment upon conviction. Doty will face a jury trial this week on three charges of first-degree child molestation.

A jury of Pettis County residents was selected Tuesday morning. The jury is composed of seven men and seven women, with two of the 14 serving as alternates.

Doty is accused of inappropriately touching three girls on several occasions. Each of the girls was younger than 10.

Pettis County Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Mittelhauser said the three alleged victims told officials with Child Safe that Doty touched them on several instances on golf carts and in bath tubs and exposed himself while in a swimming pool.

The girls said the incidents had been going on for about two years before they were reported, Mittelhauser said.

“Over the course of the trial, you will see that the evidence proves beyond a reasonable doubt the defendant touched (the alleged victims), all children under 14, for the purpose of satisfying his sexual desire,” Mittelhauser told jurors.

Doty’s attorney, Phillip Gibson, said several other children and adults were present at many of the locations where the alleged incidents would have occurred and no one reported any inappropriate behavior.

“It wasn’t just Fred and the girls in the pools,” Gibson said. He said the owners, aware of their liability in owning a pool, were present and “paid very close attention to what was going on.”

He also said evidence will be presented to show the girls still enjoyed visiting Doty after the incidents were alleged to occur. He contended that if their allegations were true, they would not have wanted to have contact with Doty.

Gibson said the trial will expose inconsistencies in the girls’ statements and situations where they told investigators what they heard from each other rather than what they knew. He said comparing the girls’ statements to witness testimony will reveal the improbability of any wrongdoing on the part of Doty.

“When that comparison is made, when the evidence is in, you will see how unlikely this is that it ever occurred,” Gibson said.

The trial will continue at 8 a.m. Wednesday in Pettis County Circuit Court. Testimony is expected to conclude Thursday.