CAMARILLO : Not-Guilty Plea in Molestation Case
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A 71-year-old Camarillo man accused of sexually assaulting two young children pleaded not guilty Friday in Ventura County Superior Court to 18 charges of child molestation.
Charles Soul Murphy, a retired maintenance worker, denied charges that he molested the 8-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son of a friend between New Year’s Day and May 31, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Patrice Koenig.
He was also charged with special allegations that he had had “substantial sexual conduct” with a child under age 11--including sodomy, masturbation and oral sex--which carries a mandatory prison term upon conviction, she said.
If convicted on all counts, Murphy faces a maximum possible sentence of 40 years in prison, Koenig said. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of eight years, she said.
Defense attorney Louis J. Samonsky Jr. declined to comment on the charges against his client.
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