Jurors deliberating abuse charges in ‘gifted’ girl case
Jurors in suburban Philadelphia are deliberating the fate of a man accused of having sexually assaulted six girls in the same family, fathering two children by one of them
Closing arguments were delivered Monday in the Bucks County trial of 52-year-old Lee Donald Kaplan on numerous charges of rape and sexual assault.
Authorities allege that the parents of the girls “gifted” the oldest girl to him because he helped them financially. Deputy District Attorney Kate Kohler said the defendant created a world in which “child rape was the norm.”
Defense attorney Ryan Hyde said Kaplan was married to the oldest daughter in the family’s eyes and never abused the younger girls. He said they lied, reversing initial statements denying abuse, to help their mother get out of jail.
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