Logan County Circuit Judge Tyler Gill sentenced 45-year-old Russell Farmer to 50 years for raping and molesting his daughter, as recommended by the Commonwealth Attorney’s office

Gill handed down his ruling in a final sentencing hearing held Thursday morning.

Farmer was convicted on Feb. 27 of raping, sodomizing, molesting and abusing his now 22-year-old daughter, Ashley Farmer, between July 28, 1998, and July 28, 2000.

A jury recommended sentencing Farmer to 20 years for first-degree sodomy, 20 years for first-degree rape, 10 years for incest and five years for first-degree sexual abuse. The jury recommended that Farmer serve concurrent sentences totaling 20 years on the sodomy, rape and sexual abuse convictions, and a 10-year sentence for incest.

Judge Gill changed that sentence to run consecutively, which means Farmer will now serve 50 years, instead of the jury recommended 30.

Gill told Farmer if he sentenced him to 30 or 50 years he would still be eligible for parole at the same time – which is 20 years. Gill said he wanted to give the parole board as much leeway as he could to allow them to be able to see if Farmer had changed his life around.

Gill noted that in his experience with similar cases involving parents molesting their children, perpetrators tend to get out of prison at 70 or 75 years of age and then molest their grandchildren.

“I have to prevent this from happening to others,” said Gill, who believes abuse effects generation after generation.

Gill told Farmer he felt there was enough evidence to support the jury’s verdict of guilty and said the risk of repeat offense was very high in these cases, especially for those who cannot admit their guilt. Farmer is planning an appeal of the verdict.

Neither Farmer nor his daughter gave a statement during the final sentencing Thursday; however, Commonwealth Attorney Gail Guiling commented about the effects of what Farmer did to his daughter.

“Ashley has suffered with what happened to her for years and will for years to come. She was in fear for herself and the whole family, testifying that she was afraid her father would kill her mother if she told. We have a letter written by Farmer to his son that proves the defendant's state of mind and continued sexual behavior. He has shown no remorse and proved that when he left the courtroom in February calling his daughter a f---ing bitch,” said Guiling.

Gill also reviewed the letter written by Farmer to his son before final sentencing as well as the outcome of Farmer’s sexual offender risk assessment which placed him at low risk.

“I am relieved it is over and now I can put it behind me,” said Ashley Farmer.

Ashley’s mother, Marsha Farmer, said she was relieved for Ashley, the whole family and the rest of society.