Delco Man Convicted Of Child Molestation In GA And Philadelphia

CHICHESTER, PA — A Delaware County man has been convicted of two counts of molesting a child both in Philadelphia and in Georgia, according to the authorities in Georgia.

Steven Towns, 62, of Chicheseter, began molesting the victim when they were 6 years old, the Gwinnett County, Georgia District Attorney said in a Facebook post. The victim "made an outcry to a relative" when they were a teenager.

Towns was arrested in Philadelphia and in Gwinnett.

In September 2017, a jury in Philadelphia found Towns not guilty of the crimes.

The victim and their mother at that time were unsure of whether to pursue the Gwinnett case, the release says. But after a visit from members of the DA's Special Victims Unit, they decided to proceed.

Towns elected to have a bench trial instead of a jury trial, so Gwinnett County Superior Court Judge George Hutchinson would determine the outcome of the case. He found Towns guilty on both counts of child molestation.

"Judge Hutchinson pointed out that, in fact, as a result of the victim disclosing this sexual abuse, the victim had not benefited but rather had been forced to repeatedly relive these experiences, first during the 2015 forensic interview, then during the 2017 Philadelphia trial, and again during this trial," the release says.

The judge sentenced Towns to 30 years with the first nine served in confinement, and he'll have to register as a sex offender when he's released.

Story by Geoff Dempsey/Patch