Man acquitted of rape, kidnap still faces 10 years

TACOMA – A man acquitted of rape and kidnapping charges still faces 10 years in prison for taking sexual photographs of an underage girl.

Jurors on Thursday convicted Stanley Scott Sadler, 48, of eight counts of sexually exploiting a minor. He is scheduled to be sentenced to a mandatory 10 years at a July 21 hearing.

Sadler’s attorney, Michael Schwartz, said he plans to appeal the convictions. Sadler was acquitted of several other charges: kidnapping; third-degree child rape; possessing and dealing child pornography.

The divorced father of three and postal worker from Fircrest was arrested in September 2004 by police searching for the 14-year-old girl.

Prosecutors said Sadler picked the girl up in Camas after meeting her through sexual bondage and discipline Web sites.

Authorities said Sadler had sex with the girl at his home, encouraged her to have sex with another woman, and took sexual photos of the girl and e-mailed them to friends.

Sadler claimed the girl advertised herself online as a “sex slave,” offered identification showing her as 19 and consented to everything they did.

Prosecutors didn’t contest Sadler’s claims about the girl’s supposed age, but argued he still should have known she was younger.

“We knew going into this it was going to be difficult for the jurors,” Deputy Prosecutor John Neeb told the News Tribune of Tacoma.