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Pike County Man Gets 30 Years After Guilty Plea in Child Sex Abuse Case

The plea came the day before trial, sparing the child from taking the stand.

Overview

  • David Ezra Benton, 34, admitted to 14 counts of sexual abuse of a child under 12, four counts of first-degree sodomy, and 18 counts of producing obscene material.
  • Judge Shannon Clark ordered a 30-year term to be served day-for-day in the Alabama Department of Corrections without good-time credit or parole.
  • Prosecutors said Benton filmed the assaults on his phone in October 2021 while visiting friends and slipping into the girl's bedroom.
  • The victim told her parents the next morning and later agreed to the plea resolution, according to District Attorney James Tarbox.
  • Benton had been set for trial Wednesday as the Pike County Sheriff’s Office led the case with assistance from the regional Child Advocacy Center and the Alabama Attorney General’s Office.