Five weeks ago today, former Aberdeen City Councilor Riley T. Carter was convicted of three counts of rape of a child in the first degree, three counts of incest in the first degree, one count of child molestation in the first degree, and one count of incest in the second degree, by a jury of his peers in Grays Harbor County Superior Court.
On Friday, Carter was sentenced to a minimum of 46½ years in prison.
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Prior to sentencing, Grays Harbor County Criminal Chief Deputy Prosecutor Daniel Crawford deferred to the victim, her mother and anyone else who wished to give a statement.
Mya Hernandez read her daughter’s statement to the court. It read, in part, “I felt betrayed, very betrayed by someone who was meant to keep me safe and happy, but I did not feel that. … I want Riley to be gone forever. I want him to be stuck in one loop, like how I was, and I want him to be in a bad place — like how he put me in a horrible place.”
Hernandez also read a prepared statement from the victim’s biological father that read, in part, “She is the bravest girl I know,” and went on to describe how Carter had betrayed his responsibilities as a step-father.
Hernandez read from her prepared four-page statement, that read, in part, “This isn’t just about abuse. This is about betrayal that carved through the bones of my family. This is about a man who didn’t just break trust — he broke us. He didn’t just lie, he ‘performed.’ To the world. He was a councilman. A hero. A ‘protector of children against predators.’ But in our home he was the danger. … Riley is vile. He confessed — then took it back — and forced a little girl he broke to take the stand and relive every sick thing he did to her. … He is not safe. He is not sorry. And he does not deserve leniency.”
The victim, who was present via Zoom, chose not to speak.