Rebecca Romy held a child down while a dog licked off peanut butter.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The subject matter of this story might be disturbing to some readers.

CANTON The judge scolded Rebecca Romy, telling her to look at him as she cried after she was sentenced to five years in prison in a child abuse case.

Frank Forchione chided the 35-year-old Canton woman for holding a young boy’s legs down while her boyfriend put peanut butter on the child’s genitals and had a dog lick it off.

A Stark County Common Pleas Court jury found Romy guilty last week of gross sexual imposition and endangering children, both third-degree felonies.

Forchione sentenced her Monday.

"I have to be candid with you," he said. "I had a really hard time sitting through this trial."

He told her the boy "is not a Reese’s cup."

Forchione said the boy demonstrated "courage" and "fortitude" in testifying.

"It’s disturbing, perplexing and beyond any bounds of decency," he said of the woman’s actions. "... Nobody has the right to do what you did to that child.

"... I don’t know whether this was induced by drugs or just plain stupidity."

Co-defendant indicted

Following the hearing, Stark County Assistant Prosecutor Daniel Petricini said Chad A. Newman is a co-defendant in the case.

Newman, 32, was secretly indicted on the same charges last year and is expected to be extradited to Ohio after he serves a one-year prison sentence in Missouri in an unrelated case.

Romy’s charges were merged for sentencing purposes.

Five years was the maximum prison term. "If I could give you more, I’d give you more," Forchione said.

Romy also must register as a sex offender for 25 years following release from prison.

Forchione also castigated Romy for mistreating the dog. "Dogs deserve to be treated (with respect)," he said.

The incident happened in 2017 and it was reported to authorities in 2018, Petricini said.

Romy testified and disputed the boy’s timeline of events and testimony, the assistant prosecutor said.

During the hearing, Petricini said the facts of the case "are uniquely heinous."

"The jury found there was credible evidence beyond a reasonable doubt" to find Romy guilty of the charges, he said.

The boy testified that she "held his legs, that she laughed while she was doing it, and that she slammed his feet down while Mr. Newman abused him," Petricini said.

Petricini credited those who assisted with the case, including Carrie Schnirring, a clinical psychologist who interviewed the child multiple times.

He also praised the work of Katie Nduati, a nurse practitioner with Akron Children’s Hospital.

"These cases are hard but I couldn’t effectively prosecute them without the hard work of everybody at the (Children’s Network of Stark County’s Multi-Disciplinary Team)," Petricini said. "From the police to social workers to medical staff and mental health professionals.

"Without them putting in all the time, it would be much harder for me to get justice for the victim."

Reach Ed at 330-580-8315 and ed.balint@cantonrep.com

On Twitter @ebalintREP