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Man who assaulted young girl gets probation

YORK COUNTY, S.C. — A Rock Hill man won’t spend a day in jail for a crime that changed a girl’s life.

Prosecutors offered Edwin O’Neil a plea deal after sexually assaulting a 7-year-old girl he was trusted to watch.

The girl’s family was devastated and tried to convince the judge that Friday’s deal doesn't give the family justice.

O'Neil had no expression on his face as her father asked a judge for justice in York County.

The girl’s father, who didn’t want to be identified, said his daughter was molested last year.

The victim's family said when their daughter was 7 year's old, O’Neil, an old family friend, would watch the girl and her sister.

They said they found out he took advantage of their trust when their daughter said O’Neil touched her sexually.

"It's just, that absolutely breaks a father, a parent, whoever,” the father said. “It breaks them down."

The crime wasn't reported for a months because the little girl was afraid, which is among the reasons the district attorney negotiated a deal.

The district attorney also did not want to retraumatize the victim by making her testify.

"Do you still want to enter your no contest plea?" the judge asked.

"Yes sir, I do," O’Neil said.

O'Neil pleaded no contest to a lesser charge of first-degree assault and battery with three years of probation.

"I'm sorry, a child molester doesn't even need to come close to being able to walk free out of here," the father said.

The terms for O’Neil's probation are still being set, but the judge said he cannot have contact with the victim or family members.