Joseph Robert Meili, 22, started conversing with an 11-year-old girl after searching the dating app MeetMe. Their chats eventually turned amorous, and the girl agreed to meet Meili at his house. Seizing the chance, he took the adolescent to his Springfield, Missouri, residence, where the girl claims she inadvertently fell asleep. Her biggest nightmare came true when she awakened.
In this day and age, kids are utilizing cutting-edge technology at a younger age. While this helps youngsters to swiftly and effectively interact with family and friends, it also enables predators to approach kids with whom they would otherwise never come into touch. Sadly, Meili preyed on his victim in this manner.
When the girl awoke in Meili’s place, she felt odd, as if something sexual had occurred to her. A few weeks later, she informed detectives that Meili had intercourse with her, which was corroborated by a DNA sample found in the child’s underpants. Worryingly, the girl tested positive for chlamydia, a sexually transmitted infection.
Meili should have spent years in prison after pleading guilty to first-degree statutory rape, first-degree statutory sodomy, and child kidnapping. But, because of the bargain he secured, the acknowledged child rapist will never see the inside of a jail cell.
Meili’s charges were reduced to one count of third-degree child molestation, a class C felony, after pleading guilty to the rape and kidnapping. Despite the fact that his charges were significantly reduced, Meili still risked 3 to 10 years in jail and a $10,000 fine. However, after hearing his alarming justification, the court sentenced him to merely 5 years of supervised probation.
Meili told Judge Calvin Holden he thought the 11-year-old girl was actually 18 years old. Furthermore, he blamed the rape on his juvenile victim, stating that he was “basically catfished” by the girl after she informed him online that she was older and her profile identified her as being 18.
The prosecution eventually concluded that it was clearly impossible for Meili to think the girl was 18 years old based on her physical attributes alone. Nonetheless, Greene County Senior Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Elizabeth Fax feels he committed the sexual assault due to “willful ignorance.”
Prosecutors suggested that Meili serve at least 120 days in a sex offender treatment program and up to 7 years in jail for his offenses, notwithstanding his plea agreement. But, Judge Holden simply sentenced him to probation, therefore allowing him to get away with raping a vulnerable youngster. Rulings like these send a strong message to rapists that they can get away with it.
Meili should have been imprisoned, yet he walked out of the courtroom free. He has exhibited no regret, rather blaming his 11-year-old victim for deceiving him into having sex with her rather of taking accountability for his acts and filthy impulses.
Meili’s light sentence instructs child predators that they may groom, abduct, and rape kids as long as they claim the kid was a voluntary participant and that they believed the youngster was of legal age. We can only presume that he will be in the headlines again, given there was no punishment to prevent his heinous actions.
