By Staff Report
A judge sentenced a former staffer at the Sununu Youth Services Center, formerly called YDC in Manchester, to serve 30 to 60 years in prison after being convicted of three counts of sexually assaulting two boys while they were incarcerated at the juvenile detention facility in the 1990s.
In Hillsborough County Superior Court Thursday, Judge William Delker, said the nature of Stanley Watson’s crimes warranted the sentence.
Delker reminded Watson that he sentenced another ex-YDC worker Bradley Asbury last week to the maximum sentence for being an accomplice to aggravated felonious sexual assault of one resident at King Cottage at YDC.
“While his actions in that case I described as sadistic, in many ways your conduct is far worse,” Delker told Watson, 55, of Allenstown.
He used only the initials of the boys, who are now adults, saying “AC and CS were vulnerable adolescent children.
“You pretended to be their friend when they had no other friends in their life. To give them privileges, to treat them with special attention they never experienced from another adult only to take advantage of that trust for your own selfish sexual gratification,” Delker said.
Delker said Watson controlled everything about the boys’ lives at YDC.
“They were literally your prisoners and you were their guard and you knew because they were wayward children no one would believe them and that gave you power and control,” Delker said.
To this day, the two men experience shame and confusion “about what you forced them to do,” Delker said.
Attorney General John Formella issued a news release saying the sentencing “highlights the seriousness of Mr. Watson’s actions and sends a clear, firm message that such conduct will not be tolerated in New Hampshire.
“We honor the bravery of the victims who came forward to testify; their courage played a pivotal role in securing justice. We also extend our heartfelt appreciation to our trial team for their commitment and dedication. We remain steadfast in our commitment to pursuing justice for YDC victims,” Formella said.
Two other criminal prosecutions of former YDC staffers have ended in mistrials.
The state brought indictments against only 11 men in the scandal in which more than 1,000 adults have said the were physically and sexually abused in state juvenile detention.
One defendant died before trial and another was deemed incompetent to stand trial.
