Miller County man pleads guilty to rape
A Miller County man is now awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to raping more than one child over several months in 2017.
Prosecutors say Dillon James Hail, 23, sexually assaulted three different children in Miller County, knowing they were all underage.
Investigators say the guilty pleas are tied to three, separate criminal cases.
In the first, Hail is accused of sexually assaulting a child in Eldon, Mo. as well as exchanging sexually explicit photographs with the child. Authorities say they found those photos on Hail’s phone, and Hail admitted his involvement in the assaults. On Tuesday, Hail pleaded guilty to first-degree statutory rape and sodomy in the case.
In the second case, a child told authorities Hail’s raped them in Brumley, Mo. Hail allegedly admitted to the rape and to knowing the child was underage. On Tuesday, Hail pleaded guilty to first-degree statutory rape in connection with the incident.
In the final case, a child living in Brumley, Mo. said Hail broke into their residence and asked the child to sleep with him. In court documents, the child says they repeatedly told Hail to go away. The child said Hail had been acting inappropriately since he moved to the neighborhood in 2016. On Tuesday, Hail pleaded guilty to first-degree burglary in the case.
All of Hail’s pleas are “open”, meaning the defendant and the state did not agree to a sentence before the plea.
The court has set a sentencing hearing for July 10, 2019.
