BY RACHEL DOVE
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
INEZ — State criminal charges, including first-degree rape, were dismissed Thursday against a Beauty man recently sentenced to 60 years in federal prison.
Martin Circuit Judge Kevin Holbrook granted Assistant Commonwealth Attorney Matt Runyons’ motion to dismiss charges against Donald York, 60, of Beauty. The charges included first-degree rape, first-degree unlawful transaction with a minor (schedule III controlled substance), second-degree unlawful transaction with a minor, and possessing/viewing matter portraying sexual performance by a minor.
Runyons’ motion to dismiss states: “The Commonwealth has consulted with the victim, who was also the victim in the federal case, and. in light of the federal sentence imposed, does not wish to pursue the remaining state charges at this time.”
York was convicted Aug. 24 in federal court in Pikeville on multiple counts related to producing and distributing child pornography for manipulating a 15-year-old girl under guardianship, forcing her to engage in sexually explicit acts. He produced images of these acts and uploaded some of the images to a pornographic website.
Court documents revealed the crimes occurred from September 2019 to April 2020. One incident involved the girl performing oral sex on an adult male. Three other incidents involved the girl using a sex toy, soda bottle and metal water bottle in sexual performances.
York was initially indicted on the state charges in Martin County in August 2021 and accused of giving the child a generic form of Neurontin and marijuana before the sexual performances.
“This young lady has been through a horror that we can’t imagine in our worst nightmares,” Runyon said in an interview Monday. “The family feels that due to Mr. York receiving a federal sentence of 60 years with a mandate to serve 85%, justice has been served. The victim knows there is little to no chance the defendant will live to see life on the outside. He is 60 years old and has to serve approximately 51 years before even being eligible for parole.”