A Baltimore school police officer was found guilty Tuesday of sexually abusing a 16-year-old student in his office at Masonville Cove Community Academy last year.
Baltimore Circuit Judge Gale E. Rasin found Reginald Watson guilty of sexual abuse of a minor, fourth-degree sex offense and second-degree assault, saying that she believed the victim's testimony to be credible and consistent. Sentencing is set for Aug. 16.
Watson, 36, who is free on $50,000 bond, could be sentenced to 15 years in prison for sexual abuse of a minor, 10 years for second-degree assault and one year for the fourth-degree sex offense.
The victim, now 18, took the stand first in the officer's one-day trial, repeating the account she gave in February 2009, days after she alleged that Watson took her into his office at the school, where he invited her to watch the movie "Lean on Me" as she snacked on the Pop-Tarts and soda he bought for her.
She said Watson expressed desire to perform sexual acts and that when she tried to leave, he grabbed her hands, pulled her close and groped her breasts and buttocks.
The victim's mother said Tuesday that she was relieved by the verdict and glad that Watson would not be free to attack someone else's child.
Watson, who worked at the school for four years before taking a leave of absence in April 2009, testified that he took the teen into his office because he suspected that she was under the influence of marijuana. Watson was the only witness called by the defense.
Before rendering her verdict, Rasin took the school's administrators to task for what she perceived as a "callous" handling of the girl's reports of the incident.
The principal and a school guidance counselor gave inconsistent testimony when recalling how they responded to the report of the assault.
"It was a violation of what a student should expect from a school," Rasin said. "I found it, frankly, shocking."