Staff writer
One-time Peabody honor student Malachi Lee Hunsucker, accused of multiple counts of rape and criminal sodomy involving a child younger than 14, accepted a plea agreement last week that will dismiss most of those charges and result in a reduced sentence on a single count of rape.
Hunsucker is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 21 after he entered a plea agreement Oct. 20 on a charge of rape.
Court records show that Malachi Lee Hunsucker, then 18, was charged Feb. 9, 2015, with rape of a child under 14. At the time of his arrest, Hunsucker was a Peabody-Burns High School student. The incident, investigated by Peabody police, allegedly took place in January 2015.
Under the terms of the agreement, Hunsucker will plead guilty or no contest to rape and file a motion seeking a departure sentence of not less than 15 years in prison.
The agreement specifies that two other cases will be dismissed.
The Marion County case to be dismissed, filed May 13, includes three counts of rape and one count of aggravated criminal sodomy involving the same victim, between the dates of Aug. 31, 2014, and Nov. 27, 2014.
Harvey County charges to be dismissed, filed Aug. 12, 2015, include two counts of rape and three counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child, with incidents spanning between May 2012 and May 2013, also with the same victim.
The rape charge Hunsucker will plead guilty or no contest to is an off-grid felony that falls under the provisions of Jessica’s Law, making a typical sentence 25 years to life. What sentence he is given will be decided by the judge.
In March 2015, Hunsucker was ordered to undergo an evaluation to determine if he was competent to stand trial. He was ruled competent in a May 2015 court hearing. Hunsucker was bound over for trial on the charge following a June 30 preliminary hearing.