The sentence was passed down on Wednesday at the New London Superior Court, according to court documents.
Dionne was sentenced to seven years in prison — which will be suspended after three years served — and 10 years of probation following his release, the documents read. He will be required to register as a sexual offender,The Day of New Londonreported, and also adhere to a criminal protective order that prohibits him from contacting the victim for the remainder of his life.
According to the local newspaper, Judge Barbara Bailey Jongbloed said that she had considered Dionne’s lack of a criminal record and the seriousness of the offense in crafting the sentence.
The victim was not present at the sentencing, the outlet reported, but the child’s mother was in attendance and spoke about how the girl “was subject to public humiliation and the target of hate messages on social media” after the family had gone to the police.
When asked if he wanted to speak, Dionne said he didn’t wish to address anyone, according toThe Day of New London, but thanked friends and family for their support as well as expressed gratitude to the prosecutor.
Dionne was arrested in January 2018 andconvicted of risk of injury to a minor and fourth degree sexual assaultat a trial this October.
Connecticut State Police
Dionne molested the girl twice, several hours apart, the child said. Dionne’s 14-year-old son and 10-year-old daughter were in the room sleeping while it happened.
During the assault, Dionne asked the victim if she wanted to see his genitals, asking her, “Are you a big girl or a little girl?” and telling her, “If you tell your mom, I’ll go to jail and (my daughter) won’t have a daddy.”
When she refused his advances, Dionne eventually went back to his room.
This wasn’t the first time Dionne assaulted the girl. A similar incident also happened earlier, in September, and at that time, Dionne asked the girl if she wanted to kiss his genitals.
The friendship between the victim and Dionne’s daughter ended after the assault.
During the trial, the victimtestified that she was best friends with the Dionne’s daughter at the time of the assault.
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Dionne’s show,FamilyFlip,ran for one episode back in 2015.
Dionne is currently incarcerated at Corrigan-Radgowski Correctional Center.
According toThe Day of New London, Dionne maintains his innocence while the victim’s family has filed a civil lawsuit against him.
An attorney for Dionne told PEOPLE in a statement, “Juries err from time to time and did so in this case. We’ve been retained to take Mr. Dionne’s appeal and to pursue a new trial. We remain hopeful that we can correct a manifest injustice. Mr. Dionne is, in fact, ‘not guilty.'”
If you suspect child abuse, call theChildhelp National Child Abuse Hotlineat 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go tohttp://www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
source: people.com
