Diamondhead man, 77, headed to prison for 45 years for child sex crimes, DA says
A 77-year-old Diamondhead man convicted of sex crimes charges against minors will spend the next 45 years in prison without the benefit of parole, according to release from district attorney’s office.
A jury convicted Harry Lynn Trest of four counts each of sexual battery and touching of a child for lustful purposes after deliberating for two hours Friday.
Trest sexually abused the children while they were visiting relatives in Waveland over the Christmas holidays in 2018.
An investigation began after the children returned to their home in South Carolina and told their mother what had happened. Waveland police launched an investigation on Jan. 22, 2019, the release said.
A forensic examination performed on the victims confirmed they had been the victim of sex crimes.
During a week-long trial, the release said, jurors watched the forensic interview with the children, during which they told the interviewer that Trest had sexually abused them for years.
Jurors also heard from another individual Trest had sexually abused 15 years earlier, the release said.
Waveland police had tracked down the victim from years ago.
As a result of the crimes committed, a counselor said the children suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and other issues consistent with child sexual abuse.
Judge Christopher Schmidt sentenced Trest following Friday night’s jury verdict.
“I cannot begin to imagine the depravity that lies within a man’s heart in order to get some type of sexual gratification by touching a young defenseless child,” Schmidt said. “There are people who appear before me every week who stand before the court guilty of a felony, and there are many of those people for whom I have sympathy for the choices they have made. You do not fall within that category.”
District Attorney Crosby Parker commended authorities for their work.
“The conviction in this case resulted from months of outstanding investigative work on the part of the Waveland Police Department and the courage of the victims to come forward,” Parker said. “This sentence provides an appropriate penalty for this defendant based on the horrific crimes in this case and provides accountability and justice. Hopefully, this conviction will also assist the victims in their healing.”
