WALTERBORO, SC (Feb. 28 2025) – A 46-year-old man has been convicted of sexually abusing an 8-year-old relative following a two-day jury trial at the Colleton County Courthouse.
Darryl Jerome Washington, of Ground Circle, in Yemassee was found guilty Thursday of first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor. The sexual abuse occurred in the summer of 2016 when Washington was 37 and the victim was 8 years old.
He was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in prison.
“So often, sexual abuse occurs by someone the victim knows and trusts. It occurs behind closed doors and in private,” said Lynorr Musser of the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office, who prosecuted the case. “This defendant had access to this little boy, gained the child’s trust, and then threatened to beat the little boy with a belt if he told anyone.”
The boy first disclosed the abuse to his grandmother several months after the abuse occurred. He was one of four witnesses this week called by the state.
“The victim tells you who did this to him. When it happened. What happened and where it happened,” Musser said in her closing statements. “He didn’t hesitate then and he didn’t hesitate today.”
Circuit Court Judge Marvin H. Dukes III handed down Thursday’s sentence.
Musser primarily prosecutes crimes in Colleton, Hampton and Allendale counties. She has been with the Solicitor’s Office since 2013.
If you, or someone you know, is a victim of sexual abuse, help is available by calling (843) 790-6220 or by visiting the 14th Circuit Victims Services Center’s website at https://scsolicitor14.org/victim-services-center/.
