30 to 60 years for ex-YDC staffer who became foster parent to teen victim

MANCHESTER, NH — A former Youth Development Center staffer, convicted in January of three counts of rape involving two teen boys court-ordered to the juvenile detention facility, was sentenced Thursday to 30 to 60 years in the New Hampshire State Prison.

Judge N. William Delker, in sentencing Stanley Watson, 55, of Allenstown, said the abuse of the two teens 26 years ago didn’t end when they were released from YDC.

One of the boys, Delker said, was taken in by a kindly foster mother but he said Watson “snaked his way right back into the boy’s life” by offering him alcohol and special treats, just like he did at YDC.   The victim testified Watson continued to have sex with him even as he applied to be his foster parent.

“How twisted is that?” the judge said.

The assaults took place 26 years ago.  The victims are now in their 40s.  One of them read his impact statement in which he called Watson “evil” and the “devil.”  He said when he was testifying, Watson was sitting at the defense table “smirking and laughing.  I don’t see anything  funny about what you did to me.”

The other victim opted not to appear at the sentencing because of the emotional toll testifying in open court had on him.

Assistant New Hampshire Attorney General Charles Bucca told the judge that victim, when called to inform him of the guilty verdicts, broke down sobbing and crying.  He just kept saying “thank you” over and over.

Victim/witness advocate Ashley Taylor read his statement into the record.  In it, he told Watson he hated him and that he was a monster. “I pray every night the judge gives you what you deserve,” he said.

Watson, who had a mask covering his face, did not address the court.

Last week, Delker sentenced Bradley Asbury to 20 to 40 years in prison on two counts of being an accomplice to felonious sexual assault involving the rape of a teen on a stairwell in the late 1990s.  Asbury was convicted of holding the youth down, along with a fellow worker, while two other staffers raped him.

Delker said Watson’s case was “far worse.”

“Sexually assaulting a minor is a bad enough crime in and of itself but the context of this case, what you did to these two boys, makes this vile crime more unfathomable,” the judge said.

He groomed them, giving them special treats and privileges before moving on to sex.

He said Watson knew that because they were “wayward children” no one would believe them.

“That gave you power and control over them this court rarely sees in a sexual assault case,” the judge said.  When one of the boys rebuffed his sexual advances, the judge said Watson cut off the special privileges.  When he approached the teen again, he “knew the consequences if he resisted your advances.    If that isn’t grooming, I don’t know what is.”

Even though Watson was convicted of three counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault both victims testified the abuse was far more extensive, the judge said.

When one of the boys tried to get help from the house manager, Delker said Watson “violently raped him so he would learn a lesson he would never forget for the rest of his life.”

“Even though the full punishment authorized by law doesn’t come close to meting out justice in this case, any lesser sentence would send a message that there is some mitigating circumstance or factor in this case.  It simply does not exist,”   Delker said.

With that, the judge issued the 30 to 60-year sentence; three 10-to-20 year sentences to be served consecutively.

“Today’s sentence highlights the seriousness of Mr. Watson’s actions and sends a clear, firm message that such conduct will not be tolerated in New Hampshire. We honor the bravery of the victims who came forward to testify; their courage played a pivotal role in securing justice. We also extend our heartfelt appreciation to our trial team for their commitment and dedication. We remain steadfast in our commitment to pursuing justice for YDC victims,” Attorney General John Formella said in a statement.

Defense attorney William Korman declined comment.

The allegations date back to 1997 and 1998 and involve two 14-year-old boys court-ordered to be detained at the YDC on River Road, now known as the Sununu Youth Services Center.

Bucca, in asking the judge to impose the maximum sentence, said Watson worked the overnight shift.  At first, he was kind to the teens, giving them extra privileges.

But, he said, behind closed/locked doors he forced the teens to engage in fellatio.  “This defendant put a 14-year-old’s penis inside his mouth for his own sexual pleasure,” the prosecutor said.  “He did it to both children on multiple occasions.”

When the teens “aged out” of YDC, Bucca said they were “returned to society in a worse condition” and were psychologically damaged.  Both turned to drugs, committed crimes and were incarcerated.

One, in his victim impact statement, said he turned to drugs to “bury the pain” but now has been sober for three years and has two children.

Watson was not accused of forcibly raping the boys but of being in a position of authority and engaging in sex with the underage teens.  Prosecutors described him as a “sexual predator” who groomed them by giving them extra privileges, letting them out of their rooms after curfew, and rewarding them with food, before moving on to sexual acts.

Testimony revealed that investigators obtained nearly a million documents in investigating allegations of abuse at YDC.  Some of those documents corroborated what the victims said Watson did to them.

Documents submitted as evidence included logs that showed Watson on duty on two nights when one of the boys was let out of his room at 2 a.m. and again at 5 a.m.

While Watson worked mainly at Stark House, where one youth was housed, he occasionally filled in at Spaulding Cottage where the other boy lived.   Prosecutors also presented logs of days where Watson was there and that boy was as well.

The defense contended the victims made up the accusations so they could profit financially from a settlement from their lawsuits against the state. More than 1,000 people are suing New Hampshire over the abuse they allege they suffered while in the state’s care at facilities operated by the state or at ones under contract with the state.

Korman, in his opening statement, said there was nothing wrong with the relationships outside of YDC because the teens were at the age of consent once they left the juvenile detention facility.  He noted Watson is not facing criminal charges connected to that conduct.

Manchester Ink Link is not identifying the victims because of the sexual nature of the charges.

Korman said both obtained loans in anticipation of a settlement payment from their lawsuits.

Assistant New Hampshire Attorney General Nicholas Yen, in his opening statement, contended Watson was a 27-year-old sexual predator at the juvenile detention center which operated like a prison.  When A.C. moved in with him, Watson was 30.

Yen said the two men who said Watson sexually assaulted them did not know each other.  Both came forward 25 years after the alleged assaults and told similar stories about Watson.    Both alleged the sexual assaults happened inside their assigned houses at night.

Watson was in a position of authority over the children, according to the charges.  “They had no one they could turn to and if they did, who would believe them.  They were children,” Yen said.

Watson, Yen said, denied having any sexual contact with the boys at YDC but admitted post YDC sex with both.

“He admits the conduct he can afford to admit and he denies the conduct he can’t afford to admit,” Yen told the jurors.  “The post YDC sex was the continuation of sexual abuse.”