Man convicted of sexual assault of Foresthill toddler sentenced to life in prison without parole

Judge Michael W. Jones on Thursday sentenced a man convicted of numerous charges, including aggravated sexual assault of a child, torture and forcible penetration of a child and personal infliction of great bodily injury related to a 2020 attack in Foresthill, to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Jeremy Dawn Wilson, 30, reportedly attacked a 2 1/2-year-old child, who had been tortured, beaten, drugged and sodomized with an unknown object in his home, in February 2020, according to the Placer County District Attorney's Office. The victim, identified as John Doe, was rushed to a hospital after being found by his mother with extreme bruising, swelling over his face and mouth, more than a dozen fresh adult bite marks covering his body and lacerations, bruising and an abrasion to his genitalia. On May 1, a jury found Wilson, the live-in boyfriend of the victim's mother, violated a position of trust and his crime involved violence, viciousness and callousness. Before delivering the sentence, Jones said, "I cannot provide true justice because true justice would be to wave the magic wand and put John Doe … a few hours before and not have this happen; I can't do that. "The sentence I'm going to impose, he (John Doe) will know the defendant no longer has power over him." Jones found the maximum sentence was appropriate due to the gravity of the crime. The DA's office reported Jones questioned "why?" Wilson would act out the crime against a child and acknowledged the "why" may never be answered due to Wilson not admitting to the crime or showing remorse. As part of the sentencing, Jones also noted in the event Wilson is released from prison, he will be required to register as a Tier 3 sex offender and will have GPS monitoring for the rest of his life. "I'm very relieved that this justice was served for my child," Ashley Halverson, mother of John Doe, said following the sentencing. "It was just the longest three and a half years to get this sentence. He's truly a monster. God's really the only person that could forgive him because I can't." Joe Davidson, grandfather of John Doe, said the family never lost faith in the justice system. "As long as it took, we didn't lose faith in the system. … The evidence was overwhelming and the jury wasn't going to be fooled," he said. Heather Miceli, grandmother of John Doe, shared words of wisdom for others to protect themselves from becoming a victim. "Any types of red flags, whether you feel they are made up or not, follow them," Miceli said. "It's better to be wrong than having the unimaginable happen."