'It's hard to imagine anything more heinous': Father killed 15-week-old daughter during oral rape



A father has been found guilty of killing his 15-week-old daughter while he was orally raping her.



Steven Deuman Jr, 26, of Suttons Bay near Traverse City, was convicted of first-degree murder and aggravated sexual assault after jurors - who were subjected to disturbing testimony and photos - took less than an hour to convict him.

In August 2011, baby Evelynne Deuman was found in the bedroom of their mobile home bleeding from the nose, unconscious and not breathing.

Sick: Deuman was convicted of killing his three-month-old daughter while he was sexually assaulting her in August 2011 Tragic death: Evelynne Deuman was found unresponsive with a condom in her mouth on the floor of her home

Deuman wasted valuable time from the moment he found his baby daughter until he called an ambulance.



He later told her mother Natasha Maitland that she had choked on a used condom.

Throughout the trial, he maintained he put his daughter on the bed while he went outside for a cigarette. When he came back she was lying on the floor not breathing with the discarded condom in her mouth.

Subsequent tests showed the DNA on the outside belonged to the baby and on the inside belonged to Deuman.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Phil Green told jurors that Deuman killed the girl during the oral rape, and then he considered scenarios throughout the evening to suggest she died of an accidental cause.



He didn’t call 911, but told Maitland on the telephone that their daughter wasn’t breathing, wasting valuable time which could have saved her life.



He faces life in prison.



Scene: Ten members of the same family lived in this mobile home in Suttons Bay, Michigan, on land belonging to Chippewa Indians

Green said yesterday: 'This was a very difficult case for anyone to have to hear.



'This is about as heinous as it gets. That’s a tragic reality here. He did do it.



'A beautiful 15-week-old baby girl lost her life, lost her future, because of his need for sexual gratification.'

He applauded the baby's mother Natasha for testifying on behalf of the prosecution, despite 'having to endure a loss no one should ever have to endure'.

According to Michigan Live, he told jurors: 'This was no accident. She couldn’t roll over, much less crawl.



'She certainly wasn’t capable of overcoming the obstacles on her bed, the pillows, to end up on the floor. Even if (she did), how is she going to suck that condom up?'



Finally, he said: 'It’s hard to imagine anything more objectionable than the oral rape of a 15-week-old baby.'



Jurors also heard from witnesses who, as children, claimed they also were sexually abused by Deuman.

The defense attorney argued that his client was a proud father and that the mobile home they shared with ten other people was an 'accident waiting to happen.'

