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Colorado Springs man found guilty of sexual assault on children sentenced to life in prison

Posted at 2:04 PM, Dec 21, 2020
and last updated 2020-12-21 18:13:12-05

COLORADO SPRINGS — A man found guilty of sexual abuse on children dating back over 20 years has been sentenced to 624 years in prison, according to the Fourth Judicial District Attorney's Office.

The district attorney's office announced Sunday evening that 69-year-old Joseph Lee Davis was sentenced after being convicted of 15 counts including sexual assault on a child in a position of trust - pattern of abuse, enticement of a child, and sexual exploitation of children.

"Over the course of more than 20 years, the defendant groomed, manipulated, threatened, and molested children from his neighborhood and extended family," the release stated. "This dangerous pedophile tormented and destroyed the lives of his victims and the community while operating in the shadows to avoid the notice of law enforcement."

Davis was arrested in December 2018 after detectives with the Colorado Springs Police Department discovered evidence and began investigating the ongoing sexual abuse of other children and the production of child pornography stretching back at least 35 years. Through an investigation around the time of his arrest, detectives discovered they had interviewed one of his possible victims in 2010.

According to the documents, CSPD said a victim told police on May 17, 2010, that Davis made him perform oral sex and anal sex “several times.” The victim also said Davis made him pose nude and that Davis showed the victim that he had other naked photos of minors stored on disc drives on the bottom shelf of his nightstand.

Police searched Davis’ home on Fountain Drive more than eight years after that interview. Detectives reported finding illegal materials as they followed up on a report from a different alleged victim.

Charles Portis, Davis' stepson, was arrested shortly after Davis for sexual assault on a child in February 2019. He was sentenced to six years in prison back in November 2019 after pleading guilty to child pornography charges.

RELATED:
Detectives: Evidence reveals 35 years of sexual abuse of children
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