Prosecutors hope to use two previous incidents against Scott Dean in molestation case

By Valerie Rowell

Prosecutors in the child molestation case against former Columbia County Commissioner Scott Dean have filed a notice of their intent to bring up evidence at his trial of similar acts allegedly committed, including two when he was a teenager.

Dean faces two charges of molesting his adopted daughter.

According to the Notice of Similar Transaction filed Monday at the Columbia County Clerk of Court office, prosecutors intend to present evidence that in June 1984, Dean, then 14, molested two girls in West Milford, W.Va. Neither case was prosecuted.

Prosecutors also allege that between January and October of last year, Dean criminally attempted to commit incest with two of his daughters, one of whom is the victim in the child molestation case. No charges have been filed in connection with those allegations.

The prosecutor plans to discuss these incidents at Dean’s trial, tentatively scheduled for Dec. 12, “for the purpose of showing bent of mind, intent, the lustful nature of the accused, as well as to corroborate the testimony of the victim,” according to the court document.

Dean is accused of exposing himself to and inappropriately touching his daughter, who is one of five children Dean and his wife adopted in 2008 from Guatemala.

Initially indicted on the charges in February, he pleaded not guilty.

A Columbia County grand jury re-indicted Dean on Sept. 28 on the same charges, but adjusted dates and the nature of one of the charges, according to court documents.

The original indictment states the activity occurred between Sept. 1, 2008, and Sept. 11, 2010. The new indictment extends that period to Oct. 11, 2010. Dean pleaded not guilty again on Oct. 21.