A Norfolk County Superior Court judge rejected calls for special treatment today for a popular Dover coach, handing down a stiff sentence that will send the father of five to state prison for four to five years.
UPDATE:
Read the memorandum which Judge Janet Sanders prepared before sentencing Dover coach William Polk. She prepared this memorandum before deciding on a final sentence, so the document’s final page was not prepared ahead of time.
William Polk, convicted by a jury of statutory rape last month, was sentenced today by Judge Janet Sanders, who rejected calls from the defense attorney and dozens of supporters that Polk was innocent and shouldn’t go to jail.
Support for Polk was so strong in Dover that he was allowed to remain coaching youth lacrosse and basketball even after he was indicted for child rape. But now his coaching days are over.
Prosecutors asked for a 10- to 12-year prison term, citing the nearly 30-year age difference between Polk and his victim, his niece who was 15 years old at the time of the assaults.
Polk had hoped to stay out of prison while his case is appealed because, he said, he is innocent.
“Your honor, I would like to start by saying that I believe that this prosecution and my conviction are the result of a series of profound mistakes. Mistakes but not malice,” Polk told the judge during the sentencing hearing.
But the judge clearly wasn't buying it, pointing out that even though Polk did not testify in his defense, a jury heard enough evidence, including testimony from the victim herself, to unanimously convict him.
