CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Juan Moore was placed in handcuffs Wednesday and said one final goodbye to family members after a Kanawha County judge sentenced him to 40-80 years in prison for sexually assaulting his daughter 19 times.
Moore, 39, of Charleston, was previously put on home confinement after a jury convicted him in March.
“This defendant has never admitted what he did and he never will,” Kanawha County Assistant Prosecutor Jennifer Gordon told Circuit Judge Tod Kaufman in Kanawha County Circuit Court.
Moore was accused of sexually assaulting the girl, who prosecutors say was 15-year-old at the time, in St. Albans and Charleston between Nov. 2012 and Jan. 2014.
Gordon said family members called the victim a liar.
“When she would talk about how she lost this relationship with not only her father, but most importantly with her mother — that she was really grieving for the loss of the relationship because her mother did not believe her,” she said.
Before he was sentenced, Moore addressed the court to discuss how much he loves his wife, Suzanne.
“She is always my heart and person,” he said. “I worry about how she will continue without me and me without her.”
Moore was held in the South Central Regional for some time where his attorney Sara Whitaker said he was beaten up by six inmates. That was one of the many reasons why Whitaker told the judge her client did not belong behind bars.
“The state has recommended that Mr. Moore die in prison when convicted murderers in our county are currently serving sentences that they are likely to complete in their lifetime,” Whitaker said.
During the hearing, Gordon placed a lot of focus on the victim referring to her bravery throughout the trial. The girl was not in court Wednesday.
“She could’ve given up and said ‘I don’t want to do this,'” Gordon said. “But she didn’t. She kept going because she wanted justice for what was done to her, so it’s understandable that she didn’t want to come and speak today.”
But Moore’s family will never choose to see him as a sex offender, Gordon said. Letters from the family described Moore as “family man.”
“(They) were portraying him as someone who would not hurt a fly, and your honor, that’s just clearly not what the defendant’s records says. That’s clearly not what this court heard and the jury heard regarding his actions toward his daughter,” Gordon said.
Moore faced a possible sentence of 180 years to 380 years in prison.