MIAMI – A 90-year-old man from Miami-Dade County has been offered a plea deal for a case of child sexual abuse dating back several decades.
The agreement spares Albert Edward Bassett from serving time in jail after he was accused of sexually abusing Keisha Etienne, when she was between the ages of 9 and 14.
Etienne wanted Bassett to end up pleading guilty to child sex crime charges and be placed on a sex offender registry. Instead, he pleaded guilty to four counts of aggravated child abuse charges, earning him 10 years probation. He was not required to register as a sex offender.
Local 10 News does not typically identify victims of sex crimes; Etienne has chosen to speak publicly.
An arrest report states that the initial incident was reported on Jan. 1, 1997 in Golden Beach.
Detectives said when the victim was between 9 and 11 years old, Bassett would allegedly watch pornography with her and touch her genitals. The report states Bassett would also force the victim to touch him and perform sex acts.
Miami-Dade police said Bassett raped the victim when she was between the ages of 12-14 years old “on multiple occasions.”
Etienne, who is now in her 30s, asserts that the charge against Bassett only represents a fraction of the abuse she claims to have suffered.
“If there is a 9-year-old girl right now who is going through what you said you went through at this age, what would you want her to know?” Local 10 News reporter Christina Vazquez asked Etienne.
“That you don’t have to keep promises. If anyone is keeping you alone, that if anyone is giving you things, that you can talk, even if you don’t have the best language. I would tell them to use real terms and conversations, not fake terms of what people call private areas or anything like that but to be explicit, to reach out to their school counselors, administration, and now that the adult version of them would be thankful,” said Keisha Etienne.
“When you heard the judge say, ‘justice is imperfect,’ but perhaps this is the best society could do right now, what went through your mind at that moment?” asked Vazquez.
“I truly just thought about this country, and what Black and Brown people have dealt with and the injustice they still deal with in 2024,” Keisha Etienne replied. “I feel like we are always fighting about how there is very little who stand up and how justice can be perfect, because God is perfect. It is humans who are imperfect.”
The victim told Local 10 News that she has a 7-year-old son and an 8-year-old niece who she says keeps her going and who she fights for along with the support of her sisters.
“I think about times that I battled about whether I still wanted to be on this earth. I wouldn’t have the ability to be an aunt and a mother,” said Keisha Etienne.
Local 10 News also heard from Sabrina Puglisi, Bassett’s defense attorney.
“I am sure your client who was in the courtroom could feel her pain from the podium, is there anything he would like to say?” asked Vazquez.
“No, we have nothing to say about that,” Puglisi replied. “He feels very good about it, vindicated. This is not just a case of delayed reporting. The plea offer in this case was after careful consideration and based on numerous things including the credibility of Ms. Etienne and so I would just put out there that, unfortunately, this case is more about financial compensation versus justice.”
“He didn’t plead to the allegations he was charged with,” she added. “He ultimately plead guilty to child abuse charges (and) he accepts responsibility for those charges, that are child abuse, not sexual abuse, and at this point, he is trying to move on with his life. He has done a lot of good in this life. He served his country honorably and he just wants to move on.”
Puglisi said she doesn’t believe her client will be required to register as a sex offender.
“I don’t believe child abuse charges will qualify a person to have to register as a sex offender,” she said. “It would be a civil process, not a criminal process.”
NAACP South Dade Branch President Harold Ford felt that the State Attorney’s Office failed to pursue justice for the victim in the case.
“I don’t know why the State Attorney’s Office did not more rigorously consult their victim, the person they are supposed to be representing, to pursue the justice that she deserves,” said Ford.
“Perhaps Miami’s SAO chose not to put him on a sex offender registry because then he would have to move?” asked Vazquez.
The victim’s sister, Nerlynn Etienne, said she is disappointed with the result of the case.
“We were not even asking for jail time, we were just asking for acknowledgment of the crime was committed,” she said. “When you are the child of an immigrant, the hope is that America will stand on its principles. We didn’t get what we hoped for, but we are still watching. I still have faith that America will stand on to principles and hold predators accountable so that isn’t another Keisha Etienne in a couple of years.”
“I hope that today is not a discouragement to other victims and that is why we’re hoping that the plea would not be ratified so it doesn’t discourage other victims because imagine feeling like your voice is not heard. You watch this, see someone else’s voice is not heard, and, in some ways, it trains you. It is probably best to stay silent, but we encourage anyone, if this is your experience to speak up, hopefully, you can get the justice you are fighting forward and go further than we did,” added Nerlynn Etienne.
The victim is now a school counselor helping other kids through her trauma.
“My mother’s trust in what we call “family” ultimately contributed to me being estranged and disconnected with my two sisters and mother,” Keisha Etienne stated. “During his horrific sexual abuse of me which in turn related in lifelong emotional, psychological and spiritual trauma.”
“Childhood sexual abuser Albert Bassett took my virginity when I was a child, but he called me his ‘daughter’” she added. “He would implore me not to break his pinky promise. My attempts to bring Albert Bassett to justice (have) been fought back by my criminal attorneys.”
“Judge (Roberto) Milian, the man, (Bassett) was supposed and promised to be my daddy he failed me. The State Attorney’s Office failed me. You are my last hope for justice. Please do not ratify the plea agreement. So have the justice that a 9-year-old needs and the adult before you deserve,” said Keisha Etienne.
“The pain that this caused me every day of my life for close to 30 years is unfathomable,” said the victim.
“I don’t get to decide as a judge what those charges are,” said Milian. “Now, this is a plea that could end up being a death sentence for this defendant.”
“I understand you are outraged,” added Milian. “I understand what you said about being an immigrant, being one myself, how you feel the deck is stacked against you, and unfortunately it is, but want you to consider something, that justice is not perfect. it is not my place here to decide what a proper plea is, if that was the case they should have plead open or gone to trial. There are many reasons the state does this. They don’t want to put the victim through the trauma, or the brutal cross-examination sexual abuse victims go through, or the humiliation of recounting her private life through a jury of strangers, so I don’t feel compelled to reject this plea negotiation.
“Justice isn’t perfect. 48 years ago, less than three miles from here, they tried to assassinate my father, politically, and lost both his legs and almost his life. Nobody was charged, nobody was prosecuted, and I have to accept that as a lawyer and as a judge,” said Millan. “Justice is imperfect, even when we try to do our best.
“I know this is not exactly the resolution she wanted, but Ms. Etienne, maybe this is the best that society can do. Maybe this is the best that society can do, so I hope you find it in your heart to have some peace of mind that your courage, your integrity, your decency will prevent this from happening again,” said Milian. “It will let other young women have the courage to come forward because they will know someone is listening and willing to do something about it.”
Milian finished up in court by thanking the victim for her courage.
Bassett’s probation, which includes not being allowed to live with minors or have a job related to minors. Bassett could serve 60 years in prison if he violates his probation.
Local 10 News obtained the case’s closeout memo which stated there was an “ongoing emotional and financial relationship with the Defendant up until 2019 when the victim went to the police.”
“The Victim has always maintained that she did not want the Defendant to be sent to jail as she saw the Defendant as a father figure. All the Victim wanted was for the defendant to plead guilty to sexual battery charges and have to register as a sexual offender and be placed on probation,” the document stated.
After the case was filed, further investigation by the State Attorney’s Office and information submitted by the defense revealed the following:
• The victim maintained a relationship with Bassett that continued when the victim became an adult.
• Bassett financially supported the victim when she was living with him and her aunt during high school.
• Even after graduating high school, as an adult, Bassett continued to financially support the victim by paying for the victim to attend a master’s program at Nova Southeastern University, where she also received therapy.
• Therapy notes explained her ongoing relationship with the Bassett which was voluntary and financially convenient.
• Bassett financed vehicles, vacations, to study abroad as well as legal defense counsel as needed by her for a car accident. This included other significant recent financial payments such as a down payment for a house and a lump sum payment for repair to the victim’s car.
• Additional monetary support was found to be in the form of authorized credit cards for her use and lump sum payments made in the form of $10,000.”
“The defense requested non-sexual battery charges to obviate the requirement of registering as a sexual offender which would have the unintended consequence of requiring the Defendant to move from his residence to comply with that provision. The reason this is important is because of the Defendant’s advanced age (90 years old), his poor physical health and his wife’s poor physical health,” the closeout memo stated in part.
“There may be some level of inconvenience, however, she has been inconvenienced for multiple decades, so it is absurd we are having this kind of conversation in this particular case. If we need to protest, we need to go out to share with the community that we do have a sexual offender among us, then we will share that information, if the court doesn’t do it, then guess what, NAACP will,” said Ford.
Local 10 News also received analysis from former state and federal prosecutor David Weinstein who reviewed her deposition and the closeout memo.
“It appears that during her deposition the victim gave some inconsistent answers to questions she had been asked years earlier about the alleged abuse and the defense was able to point out that she had a financial motivation for making these new statements,” said Weinstein. “In and of itself, inconsistent answers are not enough to dismiss a case or to force a plea deal. However, in this case, all of that, along with the age of the defendant, his health and other mitigating factors presented by the defense and listed in the close out memo, are reasons that could justify the plea offered to the defendant.”
“Under our state constitution and recent legislation, a victim has the right to be heard and to voice their position to the Judge,” Weinstein added. “The judge then considers the victim’s position and decides what the appropriate punishment should be in each case.”
Read the full closeout memo below:
Read the financial timeline of reported gift exchanges between the victim and Bassett here:
The National Sexual Assault Hotline is open 24 hours for anyone who they believe is a victim of sexual abuse. Click here or call 1-800-656-4673 for more information.