Nearly three years ago, a Vancouver man on trial for sexually abusing a relative nearly avoided the consequences when he downed several pills and fell into a coma.
He couldn’t avoid his fate Wednesday.
Osadebe M. Anene was sentenced by Clark County Superior Court Judge John Wulle to seven years and five months in prison in connection to the 2005 child molestation case.
Anene’s original 15-year prison sentence was tossed out by the Court of Appeals because he lapsed into a coma following the suicide attempt and missed part of his September 2007 trial. The higher court ruled this violated Anene’s right to due process.
Anene, 52, came back to Clark County from prison earlier this year for a new trial. He pleaded guilty May 26 to two counts of first-degree child molestation in exchange for prosecutors dismissing a first-degree rape charge.
While it may sound like he’s getting a lower sentence, Deputy Prosecutor Dustin Richardson said Anene’s new sentence calls for review by the state’s Indeterminate Sentencing Review Board, which could keep him incarcerated for the rest of his life. The board will review his case once he’s completed his sentence to determine whether — and when — he’s fit to be released.
On Wednesday, Anene’s attorney, Robert Vukanovich, asked the judge to sentence his client at the low point of the 67-month to 89-month sentencing range because of his lack of criminal history and current medical condition caused by the suicide attempt.
“He’s a shell of the man he once was,” Vukanovich said. “He can’t see that well anymore … He has brain damage.”
Echoing his attorney’s words, Anene then told the judge he was once a U.S. Army lieutenant colonel and served honorably in Kosovo, Kuwait and Iraq.
“This is an allegation I can’t fight because of my medical condition,” Anene said. “I’m not a criminal. I’m a victim of the process.”
Wulle didn’t agree, going instead with Richardson’s 89-month recommendation. The judge cited letters he received from the sex abuse victim, pleading for a high sentence because she was afraid of what would happen to her should Anene be released.
“According to her letter, it’s not enough,” Wulle said of the sentencing range.
But, Richardson added, the new sentence will likely be similar to the original because of the indeterminate sentencing.
Laura McVicker: 360-735-4516 or laura.mcvicker@columbian.com.
