0
0
A man who was sexually abused as a child by his babysitter punched the now 80-year-old perpetrator in the face in court after he was handed a suspended sentence.
Tylor Fu, 29, testified against Richard Gross, 80, and helped secure his conviction on 26 felony counts of sexual abuse of a child. But Gross, a family friend, secured a plea deal, and avoided jail time: he was given a suspended sentence.
Fu said that he was furious at the arrangement, and lashed out at Gross during the October 2 sentencing, sending him to hospital.
‘I was extremely angry,’ he told 8 News Now.
‘I know he’s old, but that doesn’t change anything like that, doesn’t change the damage that he caused, the horrific effects that I had to live through for decades, and it was not justice at all.’
Fu, now a married father of two, said that he was abused from the age of eight to 15.
In 2019, Fu’s wife showed him a news article about sexual abuse, which prompted him to report the abuse to police.
Fu filed a lawsuit against Gross and his wife in Clark County District Court in 2021 for assault and battery, false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and negligence and negligent supervision.
‘I really tried to put it away and move on and be strong, but as you get older, you start to realize what went wrong more, and I saw exactly where my problems were coming from,’ said Fu.
He told the news channel that he was shocked by the sentence handed down by Clark County District Court Judge Tierra Jones.
‘It just doesn’t make sense how someone can abuse a child multiple times and just walk away without any prison time,’ he said.
Judge Jones issued a suspended sentence of 60-180 months in the Nevada Department of Corrections, meaning he will not be imprisoned unless he violates the terms of his probation.
After punching Gross, causing him to fall to the floor unconscious, Fu was handcuffed and arrested for misdemeanor battery.
Gross said that he briefly lost consciousness and was taken to UMC trauma. His wife said that his glasses were broken.
Fu was unapologetic for his act.
He said he took the legal action to encourage others to speak out, and not suffer in silence.
‘It just feels like the right thing to do and I really want all the kids out there to know if you’ve been, you know, sexually abused, it’s not right and you need to report it,’ Fu said.
‘We cannot tolerate sexual abuse of children, and it is absolutely one of the worst crimes any human can commit and needs to be stopped.’
He is now being sued by Gross for battery, and has launched a Go Fund Me page to pay for his legal bills.
‘I have gone through hell and back,’ he wrote.
‘The justice system failed me in this case and didn’t sentence Richard Gross to any prison time even though the grand jury initially charged him with 26 felonies.
‘I know there are many children and adults that have experienced this and I want you to know that you have the power to come out with it, tells your loved ones, report your abusers to law enforcement, and find justice.’
