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A man’s 14-year history of molesting his stepdaughter and the mental health issues she suffered from the repeated abuse justified a trial court’s imposition of a maximum 12-year prison sentence for sexual misconduct, the Court of Appeals of Indiana affirmed Thursday.
According to court records, A.H. and her mother began living with Henry Nicholson IV in Illinois in 2007, when A.H. was 4 years old.
Nicholson eventually became A.H.’s stepfather, and the family lived in various locations in Illinois before moving to Indiana in July 2018, when A.H. was 15 years old.
On March 18, 2021, A.H. disclosed to administrators at her high school that Nicholson had been sexually abusing her for the last 14 years. According to A.H., the abuse had occurred more times than she could count.
Before that day, the mother was unaware of the abuse.
On March 26, 2021, the state charged Nicholson with Level 3 felony rape, Level 4 felony sexual misconduct with a minor, Level 5 felony child seduction, Level 5 felony sexual misconduct with a minor, Level 6 felony child seduction and Level 6 felony sexual battery.
The parties entered into a plea agreement in February 2023, by which Nicholson pleaded guilty to Level 4 felony sexual misconduct with a minor, and the other counts were dismissed.
The plea agreement left sentencing to the discretion of the trial court.
At the sentencing hearing, A.H. gave a victim impact statement explaining, in part: “I can’t offer a clear before and after, only the trauma that’s been inflicted. The abuse that has occurred was almost my whole life up until the Defendant’s incarceration.” Because of the years of abuse, which she described as “violent experiences,” A.H. noted that she has been diagnosed with PTSD, depression and anxiety.
Her mother also gave a statement at sentencing, expressing fear that Nicholson would violate an order of protection based on past threats.
The Lake Superior Court found aggravating circumstances including, among others: Nicholson was in a position of trust as A.H.’s stepfather; he had been a law enforcement officer yet violated the law many times; he molested A.H. more than 1,500 times, grooming her for 14 years and breaking her spirit; the emotional and mental trauma caused by Nicholson scarred A.H. for life; and the harm suffered by A.H. was significant and greater than the elements necessary to prove the offense.
The trial court thus found that despite Nicholson’s lack of prior convictions, he was “the worst of the worst.” It then sentenced him to 12 years in the Indiana Department of Correction.
Nicholson appealed, challenging the appropriateness of the trial court’s imposition of the maximum sentence.
The Court of Appeals affirmed, finding Nicholson had failed to establish that the maximum sentence imposed by the trial court was inappropriate given the nature of the offense and his character.
Chief Judge Robert Altice wrote the opinion for the appellate court.
On appeal, Nicholson directed the Court of Appeals to the Indiana Supreme Court’s observation in Buchanan v. State, 767 N.E.d2d 967 (Ind. 2002), that maximum sentences are “generally most appropriate for the worst offenders,” which Nicholson claims he is not.
The nature, extent and depravity of Nicholson’s sexual abuse of A.H. warranted imposing the maximum sentence, Altice wrote.
“A.H. endured a life of abuse for nearly her entire childhood at the hands of her own stepfather. As a result, she suffers from PTSD, depression, and anxiety and will likely struggle with mental and emotional issues for years to come, if not forever. Mother’s life has also been altered tremendously,” Altice wrote.
On the issue of character, Nicholson said that he had no prior criminal convictions and that the only other charge filed against him was for violating a protective order in 2008.
Nicholson also observed that at the time of his instant arrest, he was employed full-time earning a six-figure income, had successfully raised two sons and was honorably discharged by the United States Marine Corps in 1997.
“Despite this, we find most telling of Nicholson’s character that he did not lead a law-abiding life throughout the 14 years that he was actively and repeatedly abusing A.H., his own stepdaughter, from the tender age of four into early adulthood,” Altice wrote.
Judges Melissa May and Peter Foley concurred.
The case is Harry Gillespie Nicholson, IV v. State of Indiana, 23A-CR-890.
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