Judge keeps incest case against Butte woman moving, potentially to trial

A judge says prosecutors had enough evidence to charge a Butte woman with three counts of incest by accountability for allegedly knowing her husband was sexually assaulting children and doing nothing about it.

A defense lawyer had asked District Judge Frank Joseph to dismiss those felony charges against his client, 35-year-old Meggan Cherry, saying there was no evidence she aided or abetted the crimes.

Prosecutor Angie Rolando said probable cause for the charges has been established and “the State must still meet its burden proving the Defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Joseph sided with the state in a ruling issued Friday, saying there were enough facts to determine “a mere probability” Cherry committed the alleged crimes. His decision keeps the case moving forward, potentially to trial.

“The Court does not expect the case to be tried prior to full discovery of the facts,” Joseph said in his ruling. “The evidence used to establish probable cause is a lower bar than the one used to establish guilt.

“It is enough that there are statements made by witnesses to law enforcement and other descriptions of evidence” in the charging documents, he said.

Joseph said prosecutors also established probable cause to file a later charge of sexual abuse of children against Cherry, accusing her of having child pornography on her phone.

But if the case does go to trial, it could be months before it occurs.

A trial was set for Aug. 11, but Rolando has asked for a later date, saying a lead detective in the case won’t be available from Aug. 9 through Aug. 20. Joseph had not ruled on that request as of Tuesday.

The case against the husband, Theodore Allen Cherry III, did not go to trial.

He broke down crying in court on April 24 after admitting he raped two young girls and filmed some of the sexual assaults as they occurred.

He admitted specific sex acts and pleaded guilty to two counts of incest, two counts of sexual abuse of children for filming some of the assaults and one count of sexual abuse of children for having child pornography.

District Judge Robert Whelan tentatively set sentencing for June 12, but various factors could push that back. Theodore Cherry faces up to 100 years in prison on each of the five convictions.

Rolando says Meggan Cherry knew her husband was sexually assaulting the young girls and turned a blind eye to it, even telling one girl not to tell authorities what was going on.

One of the girls said Meggan Cherry walked in when one of the sex acts was occurring, did nothing and never spoke to her about it.

So Meggan Cherry was arrested on Nov. 21 and charged with three counts of incest by accountability, each punishable by up to life in prison with no possibility of parole for the first 25 years.

Her attorney, Robert Long, filed motions requesting the incest charges be dismissed, saying Theodore Cherry is solely to blame for the sexual assaults.

“There is no evidence (Meggan Cherry) solicited, abetted, or agreed to, or attempted to aid Ted Cherry before the commission of his offenses,” Long said in one court document, and no evidence she did that while they happened.

Joseph said Long also argued “that just because the defendant may have been present on certain occasions does not mean that she is an accomplice.”

But the judge said there is sufficient probable cause to keep the charges intact.

Meggan Cherry remains jailed with bail set at $750,000, an amount Joseph declined to lower despite requests made by her defense counsel.

If you or someone you know are a victim of sexual violence, RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) is available to help. Call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800-656-4673 or chat online at online.rainn.org.