http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1985-05-02/news/8501170366_1_boys-mother-mr-dolphus
Man Gets Five Years For Molesting Boys
May 2, 1985|By James H. Tolpin, Staff Writer
Five boys gathered in the hall outside a third-floor Palm Beach County courtroom Wednesday afternoon, waiting for the man convicted of molesting them.
``Do you want to see him led out in handcuffs?`` one mother asked.
``Yeaaah,`` several boys called in unison.
Moments later, Gary D. Dolphus, former Boca Raton karate school owner and IBM office manager, limped from Circuit Judge William Owen`s courtroom where he just had been sentenced to five years in prison. ``See you later,`` Dolphus called to his family as he boarded an elevator escorted by a court bailiff.
The victims` happiness was short-lived, however.
``He didn`t get enough,`` said one mother. ``He convinced the judge and everybody else that he`s remorseful. He`s a smart man.``
Defense attorney David Roth, who had asked for house arrest and probation, said he and Dolphus agreed the five-year sentence was fair.
Dolphus, 34, of the 3800 block of Dorson Way in Delray Beach, could have been sentenced to 15 years for each of four counts of lewd assault against a child younger than 14 and one count of sexual battery of a child older than 11, all second-degree felonies.
The incidents, which were investigated by the Palm Beach County Sheriff`s Office, occurred between December 1979 and September 1983, when the boys` ages ranged from 9 to 13.
Before sentencing, four mothers and two boys took the stand one after the other. Most of them asked Owen to sentence Dolphus to 10 years in prison.
Said the oldest boy: ``I feel the crime is worse than murder because the victim has to live with it. With murder, the victim doesn`t.``
One mother, who said she and her sons were receiving counseling, said, ``I have an underlying fear that my sons will grow up to be the same way (as Dolphus), because of what happened to them.``
``It`s put our lives in turmoil for the last year and a half,`` said a second mother.
A third mother took her turn. ``We`ve had a lot of sleepless nights. My son calls out that he`s going to kill Mr. Dolphus,`` she said. She also said she feared Dolphus might come after her and the boy if he were freed.
The last mother took the stand and started to cry. ``I feel he should be put away for life,`` she said. ``I feel he`s a menace and should not be put out on the street.``
Roth called psychologist Ginger Bush, who has treated Dolphus since shortly after his arrest in February 1984. She called Dolphus` prognosis for recovery good, and said he had suffered considerably himself.
``He`s lost his job, his school. His health is poor. He`s gone through many consequences,`` Bush said.
Testifying on his own behalf, Dolphus, who walks with a cane, said he had been molested repeatedly from the age of 4 through 14.
``Bottom line, it is my fault and not the fault of the kids,`` Dolphus said, trying to counter Assistant State Attorney Gay Broome`s contention that he blamed the victims for his predicament.
After Owen announced the sentence, several mothers hugged each other and cried. ``I can`t believe it`s over,`` one said.
Man Gets Five Years For Molesting Boys
May 2, 1985|By James H. Tolpin, Staff Writer
Five boys gathered in the hall outside a third-floor Palm Beach County courtroom Wednesday afternoon, waiting for the man convicted of molesting them.
``Do you want to see him led out in handcuffs?`` one mother asked.
``Yeaaah,`` several boys called in unison.
Moments later, Gary D. Dolphus, former Boca Raton karate school owner and IBM office manager, limped from Circuit Judge William Owen`s courtroom where he just had been sentenced to five years in prison. ``See you later,`` Dolphus called to his family as he boarded an elevator escorted by a court bailiff.
The victims` happiness was short-lived, however.
``He didn`t get enough,`` said one mother. ``He convinced the judge and everybody else that he`s remorseful. He`s a smart man.``
Defense attorney David Roth, who had asked for house arrest and probation, said he and Dolphus agreed the five-year sentence was fair.
Dolphus, 34, of the 3800 block of Dorson Way in Delray Beach, could have been sentenced to 15 years for each of four counts of lewd assault against a child younger than 14 and one count of sexual battery of a child older than 11, all second-degree felonies.
The incidents, which were investigated by the Palm Beach County Sheriff`s Office, occurred between December 1979 and September 1983, when the boys` ages ranged from 9 to 13.
Before sentencing, four mothers and two boys took the stand one after the other. Most of them asked Owen to sentence Dolphus to 10 years in prison.
Said the oldest boy: ``I feel the crime is worse than murder because the victim has to live with it. With murder, the victim doesn`t.``
One mother, who said she and her sons were receiving counseling, said, ``I have an underlying fear that my sons will grow up to be the same way (as Dolphus), because of what happened to them.``
``It`s put our lives in turmoil for the last year and a half,`` said a second mother.
A third mother took her turn. ``We`ve had a lot of sleepless nights. My son calls out that he`s going to kill Mr. Dolphus,`` she said. She also said she feared Dolphus might come after her and the boy if he were freed.
The last mother took the stand and started to cry. ``I feel he should be put away for life,`` she said. ``I feel he`s a menace and should not be put out on the street.``
Roth called psychologist Ginger Bush, who has treated Dolphus since shortly after his arrest in February 1984. She called Dolphus` prognosis for recovery good, and said he had suffered considerably himself.
``He`s lost his job, his school. His health is poor. He`s gone through many consequences,`` Bush said.
Testifying on his own behalf, Dolphus, who walks with a cane, said he had been molested repeatedly from the age of 4 through 14.
``Bottom line, it is my fault and not the fault of the kids,`` Dolphus said, trying to counter Assistant State Attorney Gay Broome`s contention that he blamed the victims for his predicament.
After Owen announced the sentence, several mothers hugged each other and cried. ``I can`t believe it`s over,`` one said.