Mt. Pleasant man sentenced for sexual assault of girls

A Mt. Pleasant man will serve 22 to 50 years in prison after he was convicted of the sexual assault of two girls.

Kenneth R. Daniels II, 42, also must comply with all state sex offender conditions after a Friday sentencing by Common Pleas Judge Scott Mears.

Daniels was charged in 2019 after the girls said he assaulted them from 2014 to 2017. In July, Westmoreland County jurors found Daniels guilty of 10 counts, including felony charges of rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and aggravated indecent assault.

Both girls attended the sentencing and shared statements to the court.

One girl, who was 9 years old when the assault began, said she now feels threatened by and fearful of men. She asked Mears to give Daniels a life sentence, adding that Daniels’ incarceration would make her “relieved, happy and safe.”

“If I’m forced to endure a life sentence for these memories, (Daniels) should serve a life sentence in prison,” the victim said.

Defense attorney Ken Noga asked for 10-year prison sentence. Noga said the court has not seen a different side of Daniels, who now cares for his mother with dementia and got engaged this year. Noga added that Daniels suffers from physical ailments and mental health issues.

“It is a sad and difficult day for everyone here today,” Noga said.

Through tears, Daniels reiterated those things in his statement to the judge. Daniels’ fiancé also provided a brief statement to the court, during which she said Daniels helped her when she had nowhere to live earlier this year.

The state’s sexual offenders assessment board did not find Daniels to be a “sexually violent predator.”

In deciding Daniels’ sentence, Mears said he considered that the assaults were not an isolated occurrence. Daniels assaulted one girl, who was 13 when the assault began, as many as 60 times.

Mears applauded the victims for showing “true courage” during the sentencing.

“Both of you had the strength to testify,” Mears said. “That is unbelievable.”