Transgender Wyoming woman convicted of sexually assaulting 10-year-old girl in bathroom
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Miguel Martinez, who also uses the name Michelle, was convicted of sexually assaulting a 10-year-old inside a bathroom. (Natrona County Detention Center)
A transgender Wyoming woman was convicted Wednesday of sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl inside a bathroom.
Michelle Martinez, who was known as Miguel Martinez before identifying as female, was found guilty of first-degree and second-degree sexual abuse of a minor and could face up to 70 years in prison.
The Billings Gazette reports Martinez, who is a family friend, invited the girl into the bathroom of a home on March 23, and touched her breasts and genitalia before penetrating her. The girl told her mother immediately after the assault, who then reported it to Casper Police.
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After the attack, the girl told police "it hurt inside,” according to the Casper Star Tribune.
Nurses at the Wyoming Medical Center performed a sexual assault exam on the minor and found redness and abrasions around the girl’s genitalia.
When police initially questioned Martinez about the assault, she became “noticeably hostile and defensive” and said the girl was “talking crap” before denying being a child molester. Martinez also called the accusations a “publicity stunt,” the Tribune reported.
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Martinez pleaded not guilty on both counts.