A Sacramento County jury has convicted Ulises Esquivel of eight counts of lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14 with force, one count of committing a sex act with a child under 10 years old, and attempted forcible oral copulation. The convictions stem from the abuse of two separate victims, according to case details made public this week.
According to FOX40, one of the victims was sexually abused by Esquivel when she was between the ages of 9 and 12, and that abuse included sexual intercourse and sodomy. A second victim was identified during the investigation, who later said Esquivel attempted to force her to orally copulate him in 2017.
Maximum Sentence Could Reach 97 Years to Life
Esquivel now faces a maximum sentence of 97 years to life in prison, the station reports. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 20 at 1:30 p.m., a date that will determine how much of that maximum term he actually receives.
The case adds to a string of child sex abuse prosecutions moving through Sacramento County courts this year. In a separate case, David Phillip Gallegos was convicted of 11 counts of lewd acts on a child and seven counts of forcible lewd acts on a child, according to the Sacramento Bee. That case involved two girls who were between 5 and 15 years old during a decade of abuse, the paper reported.
Jurors Found Aggravating Factors in Comparable Case
In the Gallegos case, prosecutors said jurors found true allegations of aggravating factors along with a sentencing enhancement for multiple victims, the Sacramento Bee reported. Gallegos could face life in prison when he is sentenced, per that same report. The two cases are unrelated but reflect the scale of child abuse prosecutions currently working through the county's courts.
No further details about the second victim in the Esquivel case beyond the 2017 allegation have been made public. Esquivel's sentencing later this month will mark the next step in a case that has already resulted in convictions on all charged counts.
