Montclair man convicted of sexually abusing stepdaughter

RANCHO CUCAMONGA -- A jury found a Montclair man guilty today of sexually abusing his stepdaughter.

Juan Trujillo Barajas, 40, was convicted of 24 felony counts, including continuous sexual abuse of a child, after jurors deliberated about four hours in West Valley Superior Court.

Barajas' 16-year-old stepdaughter accused him of first abusing her when she was 12, with the abuse escalating at age 13 when he began forcing her to have sex several times a week. Barajas was arrested May 12, 2010 after the girl first disclosed the alleged abuse to a relative.

The forced intercourse took place at a home where the girl lived with Barajas, her mother and her siblings, as well as at a Baldwin Park Mexican restaurant where Barajas and the girl worked, the girl said.

Relatives and other supporters of Barajas cried as the verdicts were read by a courtroom clerk. Barajas and his stepdaughter, who was in the audience, did not visibly react.

The girl's mother -- Barajas' husband -- said after the hearing that the guilty verdicts were an injustice. She and other members of her family believe the girl lied about the alleged abuse.

"All we know is there's no evidence that points to what they're saying is true," said Magdalena Perez, one of Barajas' relatives.

The jury of six men and six women convicted Barajas of one count of continuous sexual abuse of a child, two counts of lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14, 13 counts of lewd or lascivious acts with a child of 14 or 15 years old, six counts of forcible rape, and two counts of oral copulation by threat.

Barajas is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 2 by Judge Stephan G. Saleson.

Deputy District Attorney Karen Schmauss said Barajas faces a maximum sentence of about 80 years in prison.

Barajas rejected a plea agreement from prosecutors before the trial that carried a three-year prison term, said Schmauss and Barajas' attorney, Thomas Avdeef.

Avdeef said after the hearing that he believes Barajas is not guilty.

"I didn't see any evidence that he did it," he said.

In his closing argument to jurors on Tuesday, Avdeef said the girl falsely accused of Barajas of sexually abusing her after she learned that Barajas was not her real father.

The disclosure made the girl angry at Barajas and her mother, said Avdeef, who called the alleged victim a "mentally troubled teenager."

"Jane Doe is a liar," Avdeef said.

Avdeef noted that his client did not confess to police, nor were there any witnesses to the alleged abuse or physical evidence to support the girl's claims.

In her final remarks to the jury, Schmauss said the girl's accusations against Barajas were consistent and believable. She downplayed the significance of the case's lack of eyewitnesses.

"He is not going to rape that child in front of witnesses," Schmauss said. "It's not that kind of crime."