By Patti Weaver

 

  (Stillwater, Okla.) — A Payne County jury composed of nine men and three women deliberated for two hours before convicting a 46-year-old Stillwater man of sexually abusing a 6-year-old relative in the shower while she was spending the night at his house.
    The jury, which acquitted William V. Aldridge II of rape by instrumentation of the girl, recommended that Aldridge be given a 35-year prison term on one count of lewd molestation and a 25-year prison term on another count of lewd molestation, court records show.
    Aldridge was ordered held without bond at the close of his three-day trial last week by Payne County District Judge Phillip Corley pending his sentencing on April 12, court records show.
    The child’s mother had reported to police in May of 2022 that the then 6-year-old “was unusually quiet and did not want to talk much about her stay,” when she picked her up, Stillwater Police Detective Mary Kellison wrote in an affidavit.
    About eight hours later, the child told her mother that Aldridge “had sexually assaulted her while she was taking a shower,” the affidavit said.
    The child said that Aldridge “told her to keep it a secret,” the affidavit said.
    During a forensic interview, the child said she couldn’t say anything to Aldridge “because she was scared,” the affidavit said.
    In a pediatric examination, a nurse found signs that were consistent with sexual abuse, the affidavit said.