His lawyer Monday confirmed that a former deputy sheriff in Tennessee was convicted of raping a 14 year-old girl. He also agreed to a plea agreement with prosecutors.
According to Shelby County court documents, Brian O. Beck, 47 was indicted in June 2018 on charges including aggravated assault and rape, as well as sexual battery by an authority. On February 28, he reached a plea deal with the prosecutors and pleaded guilty for felony aggravated attack.
Court records show that his sentence includes supervised probation for three-years and a suspension from a four year prison sentence unless he violates his probation, Leslie Ballin, his lawyer, said Monday.
Ballin confirmed that Beck was accused of repeatedly raping a 14 year-old girl and that his guilty plea does not require him to register as an sex offender.
According to county court records, Judge Lee Coffee was the one who oversaw this case. Monday's comment was not possible because Coffee couldn't be reached.
Ballin stated that his client had always maintained his innocence. Beck said he agreed to plead guilty, but to a lesser crime than rape, because he did not want to leave his fate to a jury.
Ballin stated that this was a best interest plea. He decided that he did not want to give the case to 12 people. ... Mr. Beck maintained that he was innocent throughout the proceedings, even when the judge accepted his guilty plea.
Representatives from Shelby County Sheriff's Office stated Monday that Beck was employed by the agency in Oct 2004 and was fired in August 2018.
Amy Weirich, Shelby County District Attorney General, stated Monday that "given the entire evidence, we ethically couldn't proceed to trial on indicted offenses." This decision was reached in consultation with the victim.
Ballin stated that Beck's plea agreement includes the following: he cannot be arrested and he must have no contact with the teen girl.
According to prosecutors, Fox affiliate WHBQ Memphisreported Beck cannot carry a gun or serve as a member law enforcement.
