A Caddo Parish man accused of sexually assaulting two sisters under age 13 in on trial this week in Caddo District Court.
Paul Lee Bedgood, 34, of Greenwood, is charged with aggravated rape of a juvenile under age 13 and sexual battery of a juvenile under age 13. The aggravated rapes occurred between 2006 and 2009 and the battery about 2015 or 2016.
Jury selection began Monday, January 22, 2018, in District Judge Brady D. O’Callaghan’s courtroom. The final empanelled jury consists of four men and eight women.
Opening statements and initial testimony occurred Wednesday, January 24, 2018. The state presented seven witnesses by the close of court. Proceedings will resume at 9:30 a.m. Thursday, January 25, 2018.
Bedgood, who is distantly related to the victims, faces life imprisonment if convicted as charged of the rape, that term to be served at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. The punishment for a sexual battery on a victim under the age of 13 years, when the offender is 17 or older, is imprisonment at hard labor for not less than 25 years nor more than 99 years, with at least 25 years of the sentence to be served without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence.
Prosecutors are Assistant District Attorneys Bill Edwards and Mekisha Smith Creal. Bedgood is represented by Ben Langford.