Child sex offender gets 40 years in prison

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Judge Warren Krug sentenced 54-year-old Felix Alejandro Pinto Salinas of California to the maximum 40 years of incarceration, surpassing the suggested sentencing guidelines on May 22 in the Calvert County Circuit Court.

The man, who asked to be called Pinto during his plea hearing, pleaded guilty on Feb. 9 to child abuse of a minor for offenses dating from September 1999 to September 2000 and pleaded guilty to sex abuse of a minor for offenses between October 2002 and September 2004.

The victim came forward with the help of social services in another state and told police in Calvert County about the abuse. Pinto was originally charged with a dozen counts of child abuse and six counts of sexual abuse to a minor, court documents state.

Assistant State's Attorney Kathryn Marsh and Public Defender Mary Katherine Fowler were in disagreement over the sentencing guidelines during the plea hearing, with Marsh calculating 15 to 28 years of incarceration and Fowler stating it was 14 to 17 years.

At the sentencing hearing, the victim's father addressed the court and the defendant and said the victim had moved out of state to get away from the abuse and that it was only after he moved that he was able to disclose the years of abuse he had suffered at the hands of the defendant, a press release from the Calvert County District Attorney's Office stated. The father told the defendant, "I don't know if you can imagine the pain that you put me through not only by abusing my son, but also for forcing my son to be away from me. I want you to understand that you needed to be off the streets so that other kids would not be at risk," the press release stated.

charvat@somdnews.com