An Indiana man has been arrested and charged with child molesting and sexual misconduct with a minor after a 14-year-old girl told her school counselor about the abuse, according to Lynn Deddens, Dearborn County prosecutor.
A judge set bond for Daryn Deamron of Milan, Ind. at $1 million during his initial hearing on Monday.
The school counselor reported the abuse, which sparked an investigation that began on March 9 with an emergency Children's Advocacy Center interview with the victim.
Court documents state the teen told her counselor the sexual abuse began in 2020 when she was 13 and happened multiple times through July 2021.
The same day the Children's Advocacy Center interviewed the girl, investigators with the Dearborn County Sheriff's Department and the Indiana State Police executed a search warrant on Deamron's Ripley County camper, where he was living, and his pickup truck.
A press release from Dedden's office said while detectives were at Deamron's home, he made statements that the alleged incidents took place in Dearborn County.
"Educators have always been at the front line for reporting sexual abuse," said Deddens in a press release. "Since the COVID pandemic started, cases of child abuse have risen while students disclosing alleged abuse has dropped. This makes the role of teachers and staff in fighting abuse more critical now than ever. I am glad that the alleged victim was in school and made the disclosure to her guidance counselor. It takes everyone to work together to protect our children."
Sandy Runkle with Prevent Child Abuse Indiana said a teen reporting abuse to an educator or counselor isn't always the case.
"So many children do not ever disclose that they've been sexually abused," Runkle said. "You can only imagine the courage that takes to do that."
Runkle said child abuse reports were down during the pandemic. According to the American Journal of Nursing, child abuse reports dropped as much as 50% in some parts of the country due to less face-to-face interaction with teachers, counselors and nurses who often recognize and report abuse.
