Rape Conviction Results In 40-Year Prison Sentence

SNOW HILL – A Berlin man
convicted in December on first-degree rape charges was sentenced last week in
Worcester County Circuit Court to 40 years in jail.

Preston Lewis Whaley,
Jr., 43, of Berlin
was convicted in December on first-degree rape and first-degree assault charges
for an incident dating back to August, which was just the latest in a long and
sordid pattern of abuse on the victim, who was his girlfriend and mother of his
child.

Back in Circuit Court
last Thursday, Whaley was sentenced to 40 years in jail on the first-degree
assault conviction and the other convictions were merged for the purpose of
sentencing.

In December, a Worcester
County Circuit Court jury wasted little time returning guilty verdicts across
the board for Whaley, deliberating for just 45 minutes after hearing hours of
testimony in the case.