SCHENECTADY — A shocking case has come to a close as a 42-year-old Mayfield man, Joshua Hodgson, was convicted of 20 felonies and three misdemeanors for his criminal sexual relationship with a 13-year-old in 2021.
The jury found Hodgson guilty of second-degree rape, second-degree criminal sexual act, second-degree sexual abuse, endangering the welfare of a child, use of a child in a sexual performance as a sexually motivated felony, possessing a sexual performance by a child, and first-degree disseminating indecent materials to minors as a sexually motivated felony after just four and a half hours of deliberation.
The victim’s father, a longtime friend of Hodgson, allowed him to move into a spare bedroom, which ultimately led to the criminal acts. Hodgson was found to have groomed the victim and committed the physical sexual assaults while living in the home. After moving out, he continued the criminal acts related to the production and possession of sexually explicit messages and images with his victim.
“Mr. Hodgson preyed upon a vulnerable child who had recently lost her mother, but did not count on her having the fortitude and courage she showed in telling law enforcement and ultimately this jury, just what he had done to her,” said Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney in a statement.
The victim’s bravery led to the confirmation of the sexual relationship, and the subsequent investigation and arrest of Hodgson. The case was then investigated by detectives from the Schenectady Police Department’s Youth Aid Bureau, and Hodgson was located and interviewed by Schenectady police.
Hodgson is scheduled to be sentenced on April 12, facing decades in prison and under post-release supervision. The prosecution has said it will request that the judge classify Hodgson as a “persistent felony offender” because of his prior felony convictions. If classified as such, he could be sentenced to up to 25 years to life in prison for each felony conviction.
“He is a career criminal,” Carney said in a statement. “Having been incarcerated previously for burglaries, car larcenies, aggravated criminal contempt for repeated domestic abuse and many acts of assaultive or menacing conduct. He is a criminal opportunist who feels he has the right to do anything he wants, regardless of whom he hurts. By his conduct, he has earned the onus of a lifetime of confinement in prison until such time as a parole board determines he is safe to release.”
Hodgson will also be required to register as a sex offender and have no contact with the victim based on the issuance of a full order of protection for her and her father upon his possible release from prison.
Agree. Justice served for the innocent victim.