A man convicted of raping a child twice, once when she was 10 and again when she was 11, received the maximum penalty Thursday at his sentencing hearing.
Trendell Ray Brady, 34, received an 80-year prison sentence without parole after being convicted of two counts of child rape, WVLT reported.
WBIR reports that prosecutors presented evidence to the jury dating back to 2003 when Brady became romantically involved with a family member of the victim, who was seven-years-old at the time.
Brady babysat the victim and her siblings occasionally while he dated the victim’s family member. Prosecutors say it was during this period that he sexually assaulted and molested the victim, causing her to become pregnant when she was ten years old and again when she turned 11 years old. DNA tests proved in both cases that Brady was the father.
WATE reports that authorities did not learn of the situation until several years later. Once they were notified, investigators with the Knoxville Police Department took Brady in for questioning. Brady confessed to raping the girl in the interview with investigators.
But during the trial, Brady tried to pass off the blame to his twin brother. Jurors, who remained unconvinced, found him guilty at his trial in June, WREG reported.
“There are not enough years in prison Brady can serve to repair the damage that has been done,” said Knox County District Attorney Charme Allen. “However, the lengthy sentence in this case will ensure that Brady is never again able to harm a child.”
According to the district attorney’s office, each count of child rape carries a penalty of 25 to 40 years in prison. Prosecutors sought the maximum sentence for each count and asked the judge if the sentences could run consecutively so Brady would serve 80 years without parole.