In a court hearing on Thursday, Samantha Wilson, 30, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for failing to report the repeated sexual abuse of at least one child. Wilson had been arrested on August 3, 2023, on a charge of abandon or endanger child criminal negligence.
The case came to light on June 4, 2023, when a teenaged girl, identified as the alleged victim, disclosed to an investigator from the Smith County Sheriff’s Office that she had been assaulted three times over the previous weekend. Subsequent medical examination at CHRISTUS Mother Frances hospital in Tyler revealed that the victim had been subjected to sexual assault since the age of 7.
According to a heavily redacted arrest affidavit, Wilson was aware of the ongoing sexual abuse and had taken measures to prevent it. The affidavit indicated that Wilson confessed to investigators, acknowledging her knowledge of the abuse. She admitted to refraining from reporting it to the police due to fear that the children involved would be taken away from her, expressing particular concern about the male involved.
