Kevin Jonas Rojano-Nieto, 20, was convicted in December of sodomizing a 3-year-old relative and faced a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years-to-life in prison. But in court on Friday, Judge M. Marc Kelly determined that the punishment in this case was unconstitutional and reduced the sentence to 10 years in prison.
Rojano-Nieto sexually assaulted the girl last year after she wandered into a Santa Ana garage where he was playing video games, prosecutors said. The assault came to light when the girl later complained of pain and her mother noticed that she was injured.
While the crime was “serious and despicable,” it does not compare to a situation where a pedophile preys on an innocent child, the judge said at the sentencing.
The defendant “did not seek out or stalk” the victim, the judge said.
“He was playing video games and she wandered into the garage. He inexplicably became sexually aroused but did not appear to consciously intend to harm (the victim) when he sexually assaulted her. As noted by defense, in an instant, he reacted to a sexual urge and stopped almost immediately,” Kelly said.
“There was no violence or callous disregard for (the victim’s) well-being,” Kelly said.
The judge noted that Rojano-Nieto was raised in a dysfunctional family environment and has shown “extreme remorse” for his actions.
