Mark Kinney Sentenced to 15 Years to Life; Prior Sex Conviction Revealed

Mark Lewis Kinney, who formerly gave music lessons at a Ramona music store and at many private homes in San Diego County, was sentenced Friday to 15 years to life in prison for molesting two girls under the age of 14.

Prior to the sentencing, prosecutor Chantal DeMauregne told the court that Kinney had a previous conviction in 1984, for which he received psychiatric counseling. She argued for a sentence of 30 years to life for Kinney based on the fact that he had previously been convicted.

The prior conviction was not raised during Kinney's child molestation trial at the El Cajon courthouse in February because it could have affected the outcome of the jury's deliberations, the defense attorney, David Cohn, told Ramona Patch.

Cohn said that was the reason he did not put his client on the stand.

“This issue would have immediately come up,” he said.

Cohn said he did not recall the exact details of the prior conviction, but that it happened in California with a young boy.

“The boy was a freshman, or maybe in eighth or ninth grade,” he said. “Mark was fresh out of high school. They knew each other and my understanding is that it was consensual.”

DeMauregne said she could not comment on the details of the prior conviction.

Ramona Patch uncovered a complaint filed against a Mark L. Kinney in 1983, which went through the San Bernardino court system in 1984. Kinney's family is from Barstow in San Bernardino County.

The amended complaint was a charge of performing a lewd and lascivious act upon a child under 14. The original complaint indicated it was a boy. Both versions of the complaint bear the same birth date as Mark Lewis Kinney (4-20-62) as provided by Cohn.

Kinney would have been age 21 in 1983. The court record of that incident indicates that Mark L.  Kinney posted bail of $7,500. The bailor was Big Brother.

In the San Diego County case, Judge Allan J. Preckel said Kinney will not be eligible for parole until he has served a full 15 years. One of the counts against Kinney triggered that sentence. The judge ruled that the seven other counts can be served concurrently.

Preckel also ordered Kinney to register as a sex offender, have DNA testing and pay restitution to the Sheriff's Department and state of California Victims Compensation Program. Kinney is required to be registered as a sex offender for the rest of his life, the judge said.

Kinney had previously registered as a sex offender while on probation for the 1984 conviction, Cohn told Ramona Patch after the sentencing, but said Kinney was not required to register for life. Cohn said the judge held discretion over that matter.

At least three jurors attended the sentencing hearing. One of them, Brett Wilson, told Ramona Patch before the sentencing that he was there “for closure.”

Later, in court, Wilson shook his head as the prior conviction was raised by DeMauregne.

“My heart dropped,” Wilson told Ramona Patch after the hearing. “We made the right decision. I think he should have been put away for longer.”

Kinney's family, friends and the jurors mingled in the hallway after the hearing. Some of them were in tears.

Kinney was convicted in February of eight out of 10 charges related to child molestation and possession of child pornography. The three girls he was reported to have molested took the witness stand during the trial. The youngest was given a dog to pet while she testified, through a program of the district attorney's office. The jury found Kinney not guilty of molesting one of the girls.

The molestations were reported to have happened from 2003 to 2009. In 2009, the parents of the girls made a report to the Sheriff's Department.

None of the girls or their immediately family were observed in the court Friday. The girls' parents wrote a letter to the court asking for lenience in sentencing in spite of Kinney's convictions. They said they hoped that Kinney could get out of prison in time to spend time with his family in his final years, in particular with his 78-year-old father from Barstow, who attended every day of the trial.

DeMauregne said after the hearing that letters like this are common in cases in which the victims' families are close to the offender.

The judge earlier Friday denied a defense motion for a new trial. The grounds for the motion weren't revealed in court. Cohn indicated after the hearing that the motion was based on a procedural issue regarding bifurcation of the pornography issue out of the trial.

Cohn said the judge had the discretion to keep the pornography issue out of the trial but chose to let it stay in.

"I was just letting the judge know I disagreed with his decision," Cohn said.

Cohn stated in court that in talks with Kinney, Kinney had expressed that he disagreed with how the court had looked at his interactions with the girls. Cohn said Kinney did not take any responsibility for what he was charged with, but did feel "remorse" that the girls had to go through the court case.