By Natalie Frels
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25 Oct, 2024
SAN MARCOS, Texas – Hays County Criminal District Attorney Kelly Higgins announced today that 34-year-old Joseph Pavelka, IX, formerly of San Marcos, was found guilty of two counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child and one count of indecency with a child by sexual contact. Pavelka was not eligible for probation based on the severity of the offenses. He was sentenced Thursday, Oct. 10, by presiding Judge Gary Steel to six years in prison on all three counts to run concurrently. Pavelka is required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his lifetime. On Aug. 19, 2024, a Hays County jury found Pavelka guilty of sexually abusing the victim from the ages of six and seven years of age while he was 17 and 18 years old at the time. The evidence showed that the abuse was not immediately disclosed due to the defendant’s threats made to the victim, including that she would “get in trouble” and that she would not be believed. During the trial, the State presented the victim’s childhood journals that described the abuse and emotional trauma experienced because of Pavelka. After the reading of the verdict, the jury verbalized their belief in the victim and their hope that she will find closure. One of the jurors returned to the courthouse for the punishment phase in support of the victim. Prior to issuing the sentence, the judge addressed the victim personally, stating that he believed her testimony. This case was prosecuted by Assistant Criminal District Attorneys Cassidy Story and Rowan St. John. “We would like to thank the victim for her patience and courage to face her abuser after years of being silenced,” Story said. “The jury’s verdict sent a message to her and this community that they will not tolerate child sexual abuse, regardless of the time it took for the perpetrator’s crimes to be revealed.” Additionally, Hays County Criminal District Attorney Kelly Higgins announced today that 59-year-old Randall Mosbey, of Kyle, was sentenced to life in prison on Oct. 18, 2024. On Oct. 18, 2024, a jury found Randall Mosbey guilty of continuous sexual abuse of a child and invasive visual recording. Randall Mosbey pleaded guilty to the count of invasive visual recording at the beginning of trial, and after hearing all of the evidence, the jury also convicted him of continuous sexual abuse of a child. The evidence in trial showed that Randall Mosbey sexually abused a child over the course of several years starting when the child was around 7 years old. The defendant also placed hidden cameras in the victim’s bathroom and bedroom and during that investigation by law enforcement, the victim came forward to the detective and disclosed all of the years of sexual abuse. The jury also heard evidence that back in 1992, the defendant was court-martialed in the U.S. Marine Corps and found guilty of sexual offenses against a child. After the convictions for continuous sexual abuse of a child and invasive recording, Judge Dan Mills sentenced Mosbey to Life in prison without the possibility of parole under Texas’ Auto-Life statute, after taking note of Mosbey’s previous conviction for a sexual offense against a child. Judge Mills also sentenced the defendant to the maximum punishment on Count II Invasive Visual Recording of two years in state jail. This case was investigated by the Kyle Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant Criminal District Attorneys Miranda Ebersole and Elizabeth Schmidt. “We want to thank the victim in this case for having the extraordinary courage and strength to come forward and face their abuser in court,” Ebersole said. “We also want to thank Sgt. Congdon from Kyle Police Department for his extensive work on this case.” Higgins said that cases of this nature are an extremely high priority for the office, adding that justice will come to those who harm children, no matter how much time has passed.