BEDFORD, BEDFORD COUNTY - 63-year old Reverend Walter Bradshaw of Lexington, North Carolina was found guilty on 22 of 24 charges related to child molestation.
A jury found that on April 2, of 2009, Bradshaw made sexual contact and advances toward a girl under the age of 13 at the Janey Lynn Motel in Bedford Township.
Rape, unlawful contact with a minor, corruption of a minor and involuntary deviate sexual intercourse are just some of the 22 charges on which Bradshaw was found guilty.
Two of the charges Bradshaw was cleared of involved incidents that allegedly happened at a school attended by the victim.
Bradshaw's sentencing is slated to take place on Nov. 15, but a sexual offenders assessment he will have to undergo may push back the sentencing.
District Attorney and prosecutor Bill Higgins said he intends to pursue a life sentence for Bradshaw.
He faces at least 35 years in prison.
During closing arguments, Rev. Bradshaw's defense lawyer, Thomas Crawford, kept telling the jury they could not trust the word of the alleged victim.
He pointed out inconsistencies in her stories and called the alleged victim a liar nearly 2 dozen times. He also said that without the alleged victim's story, there would be no evidence at all.
The prosecutor, Bill Higgins told the jury to look at all the witnesses and all the evidence aside from the accuser's words, and to put it all together.
He brought up the taped phone conversation which really peaked the interest of the jury members earlier. In that tape, jurors heard Bradshaw apologize to the victim for what he did and ask for forgiveness.
In the end, the prosecutor reminded the jury that Rev. Bradshaw admitted to staying overnight in a hotel with the girl who accused him.
