A Dallas County District Court judge accepted a plea agreement last week after two mistrials in the case of an Elkhart man accused of raping the same juvenile female his son is now in prison for raping.
Mark Gordon Parmenter, 55, was originally charged with two counts of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse and one count of invasion of privacy in connection with incidents occurring in Perry in July 2010.
Parmenter pleaded down June 6 to a charge of third-degree harassment, which carries a maximum jail sentence of 30 days. Dallas County District Court Judge Michael Jacobsen entered a deferred judgment and sentenced Parmenter to one year of probation and a $65 civil penalty.
In spite of the light sentence, the victim in the case said she was satisfied with the outcome.
“Today my second abuser took a plea offer and was convicted of his crimes,” the victim said Friday. “To say I’m relieved is a complete understatement.”
The victim first reported the rapes in June 2017, and an investigation by the Perry Police Department resulted in Parmenter’s arrest in April 2018. They arrested his son the month before.
The elder Parmenter’s first mistrial was granted in October 2018 by Dallas County District Court Associate Judge Virginia Cobb after a juror was excused for a work-related reason. The second mistrial was granted in January 2019 by Dallas County District Court Judge Brad McCall after a witness discussed in-court matters supposed to be excluded from testimony.
Parmenter’s son, Eric Chandler Parmenter, 28, was sentenced to 10 years in prison in November 2018 after he was convicted of two counts of third-degree sexual abuse committed against the same victim his father has now been convicted of harassing.
“To the women and girls and men and boys who may be afraid to speak up or fight against their abusers: I believe you, and I believe in you,” the victim said. “I didn’t believe in myself when all of this first started almost 10 years ago, but I’m so so glad I spoke up. Thank you to everyone who believed me and supported me through this awful, draining process. Who knew this little girl would grow up to be a survivor, a fighter, a winner?”
