Federal judge denies appeal of Greene County man convicted of sexually assaulting girl
The U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals has denied the appeal of a Greene County man who was sentenced to more than 300 years in prison for producing pornography of him sexual assaulting a child.
The decision last week upheld the sentence of Eric James Stull, 51, of Morgan Township, who was sentenced in federal court March 20 for disseminating videos of him raping a girl for a decade, beginning when she was 2 years old. Prosecutors said he created multiple photos and videos of the assaults.
Stull was sentenced to serve 338 years in prison for those crimes, but appealed to the Third Circuit Court, arguing that his sentence was “procedurally unreasonable” because the court put undue weight on the nature of his offense, amounting to a term greater than is often imposed for murder.
In the opinion written Jan. 18 by federal Judge Patty Shwartz, she stated that the lower court followed guidelines by issuing a combination of consecutive and concurrent maximum sentences for the 41 counts lodged against Stull.
Stull was seeking a 20-year sentence, but a Greene County judge found that a greater sentence was needed to punish Stull and protect the public and his victim.
Stull remains lodged at SCI-Mercer.