Steven Patrick Hagan

WARSAW — Steven Patrick Hagan, 47, 1319 W. Island View Drive, Warsaw, was sentenced Thursday, May 18, in the Kosciusko County Superior Court 1. Hagan pleaded guilty to charges of child seduction, a level 6 felony, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, a class A misdemeanor, after having sexual intercourse with a female between the ages of 16-18

Hagan was sentenced to one year with regard to the felony charge and six months for the misdemeanor charge, with the sentences to be served concurrently. Judge David Cates ordered the sentences to be suspended and Hagan was ordered to be placed on probation during that time with several conditions.

Hagan’s charges stem from an incident in April when Warsaw Police Officer Ryan M. Moore responded to a call of a runaway female teenager. Police were told it was believed the teen was with Hagan, with whom she had been living. The mother of the teen had removed her from the residence after learning there was a sexual relationship between Hagan and the teen.

Police spoke with the teen and learned she had been communicating with Hagan the entire time she had run away, with a phone he had provided for her. Police received permission to download information from the phone. Through that information, police found conversations between the teen and Hagan regarding a physical sexual relationship that occurred while she was living with Hagan, who was acting as her custodian.

The mother told police the teen had spent a lot of time at the Hagan residence and by January 2016, the teen was living with the Hagan family. The mother also stated the teen told her Hagan was filling in as her father and had given her a job and opened a bank account under both their names.

At today’s sentencing, Deputy Prosecutor Katy Hampton read a letter to the court, written by the victim’s mother and addressed to Hagan. It read, in part, “You selfishly robbed (the teen) of much of the innocence and natural development that comes from developing healthy relationships. You sunk to the lowest level of scum when you used Scripture and invoked God’s name and claimed to be praying and receiving His will.”

The letter further stated, “I am requesting that the court extend the restraining order. My hope is that the court issues that harshest sentence possible for the crimes you have been convicted of.”

Hampton requested that the court consider the aggravating circumstance of Hagan being in a position of trust and pointed out that he had, in fact, encouraged and manipulated the teen to seek emancipation from her parents so that he could establish an independent residence for her and eventually marry her.

Hagan was represented by Attorney David C. Kolbe, who began by saying, “Regarding the letter written by the mother, there is no response that could salve the wound that is there and I would not attempt to do that.” Kolbe informed the court that Hagan has no previous criminal history and added, “I believe that whatever you do to Steven, you’re not going to see him again. The remorse he experiences is going to be with him the rest of his life. This label is not going to go away.”

Hagan addressed the court, stating, “This was my mistake and I’m sorry for it. I spent 46 years of my life doing what I considered the right thing and I fell short here.”

Cates admonished Hagan, saying, “You didn’t make a mistake – you made a choice. There’s a difference. Don’t misunderstand me when I say this was your choice.”

Hagan was ordered to pay probation fees and court costs, maintain employment, attend the Otis R. Bowen Center for a complete mental health assessment and follow up, have no contact with the victim and to register as a sex offender.