Search

 

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Women Gets Prison for Sex with nephew

A 45-year-old New Hudson mother of two was sentenced Tuesday to at least 18 months in prison for having sex with her then-15-year-old nephew at a family gathering.

Edwina Marie Madeja, who was 43 at the time of the June 2005 graduation party at her home, showed no emotion when Oakland County Circuit Judge Rae Lee Chabot sentenced her to 18 months to 15 years in prison.

Initially charged with firstdegree criminal sexual conduct, which carries a potential life sentence, Madeja pleaded no contest to a charge of second-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Assistant Oakland County Prosecutor Charles Snell said the boy, now 17, did not have to testify at either a preliminary examination or a trial.

"It's just as devastating for a boy as it is for a girl to be a victim of a sexual assault," Snell said after the sentencing.

Madeja, a financial analyst for an automotive company, told investigators she was intoxicated at the party and did not remember anything.

According to police files, the incident occurred after she had given beer to the boy.

He reported she climbed on top of him after everyone had gone to bed.

The boy, who is from Ohio, did not report the incident until his parents put him in counseling late in 2006, after he showed signs of being suicidal, Snell said.

When the counselor reported the allegations, police in Ohio recorded a conversation between her and the boy, in which she admitted she was the responsible party and she knew it was against the law.

The boy's father read to Chabot a statement written by him and his wife, saying they knew something was wrong with their son but could not immediately figure it out.

A single trip to a counselor opened the boy up.

"His heart was breaking in half, and so was mine. What he told me you had done was the worst thing I could imagine. (My son) is such a caring person that he would rather have died than tell an awful secret that would certainly tear up his family."

Outside court, the father said his son has given up football and hockey, having lost his confidence and ability to trust.

"He is coming along," the father said.

"He just doesn't have the confidence anymore. Now, he won't even look at his (hockey) pads or touch them. It is the saddest thing in the world."

He said watching Detroit Red Wings hockey is lost because it reminds the son of his times in Michigan with family. Days vary, and some are good, but panic attacks creep up at any time, as one did this past Fourth of July during a drive.

The parents' statement included strong words for Madeja.

"I never thought I had to protect my children from my own sister," the father read. "You are so selfish and sick-minded that you were willing to give up your only blood sibling to get away with this heinous crime. I have no use for you anymore.

"You put (my son) in his own prison. Now you deserve your prison."
Source

No comments: