Former Madison County Central School teacher, Eddie Richie, Jr., was sentenced on Thursday, August 13 to three years probation, 100 hours of community service and must continue counseling after pleading guilty to the charge of knowingly using a minor in the production of harmful material to a minor, which is a third degree felony. He was ordered to not have contact with the victim or the family. He must also pay $468 for court fees; $500 fine; $100 for prosecution fees; $450 for investigative costs; and $300 for Guardian Ad Litem costs. The Madison County Sheriff’s Office received a complaint on November 26, 2013 involving a minor female receiving sexually explicit material on her cell phone from an adult male. Special agents with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Live Oak Field Office assisted the Madison County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigative Division with the investigation.
Richie was arrested on December 2, 2013 and charged with transmission of material harmful to a minor by electronic device or equipment. Madison County Sheriff Ben Stewart issued the following statement regarding Richie’s sentencing: “As Sheriff of Madison County, I am very disappointed with the outcome of the Eddie Richie case. I believe that the Criminal Justice System let down the victim and the Law Enforcement Officers involved with this case. This case, which contained an abundance of evidence, was one of the best investigated and prepared cases that I have ever seen. There should have been a registered sexual offender requirement for this Defendant as a minimum, unfortunately this was not part of the prosecution. I do commend the men and women of the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Guardian Ad Litem for doing their part to prepare this case. Finally, I wanted to say that I do believe in forgiveness, but it should never negate the consequences of the law.”
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1. Edward Richie, Jr.