Jarrettsville Man Sentenced in Child Sex Abuse Case; Jeremy Cochran to Serve 80 Years in Prison

From the Harford County State’s Attorney’s Office:

Jeremy “Shane” Cochran, age 32, of Jarrettsville, Maryland, was sentenced on Wednesday, March 20, 2013, to serve 80 years in prison for the sexual abuse of a girl that occurred when she was five and six years old. The girl and her mother resided with Cochran in Jarrettsville. The case was initiated in 2008 when the girl disclosed the abuse and she was removed from her mother and Cochran.

Cochran and the mother were charged with abuse and conspiracy to commit child abuse in 2012 after the girl was able to give further information about the abuse. Cochran was found guilty by a Harford County jury in December of 2012 of one count of child abuse pursuant to a continuing course of conduct and one count of child abuse. He was also found guilty of conspiring with the mother to commit child abuse. He was sentenced to the maximum of 80 years to serve in prison. When he is released he will be required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.

The girl’s father gave an impact statement at the sentencing hearing where he told the Court that Cochran “robbed his daughter of her innocence and her childhood that can never be given back to her.” He worries every day about her future and what the rest of her life will be like. The State, represented by Diane A. Tobin, Deputy State’s Attorney, asked that the court impose the maximum sentence for each count because of the horrific nature of the abuse and the fact that the girl resided in the same house as Cochran and “had no alternative but to go back to that home every day to be abused by Cochran”.

The case was investigated by the Harford County Child Advocacy Center, Trooper Michelle Workman of the Maryland State Police, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office, and the Harford County Department of Social Services. The girl’s mother was also convicted of similar charges by a jury in January of this year and faces sentencing on the same charges in April of this year.

The Harford County Child Advocacy Center is a multi-disciplinary investigative task force which has been operational since August of 1993. The mission of the Harford County Child Advocacy Center (HCCAC) is to investigate allegations of child maltreatment while providing services and resources for the abused child and his/her family. The Task Force is comprised of the Harford County Sheriff’s Office, Maryland State Police, Bel Air, Aberdeen and Havre de Grace Police Departments, the Harford County Office of the State’s Attorney, Harford County Department of Social Services – Child Protective Services, and Family and Children’s Services of Central Maryland.