Kelsey victim: 'I will never be the same'

For years, the Boy Scouts trusted Michael Kelsey. They looked up to him.

Which made his actions, they said, even more inexcusable.

Kelsey, a former Dutchess County legislator convicted of sexual abuse in a case involving two Boy Scouts, was sentenced to seven years in prison and 10 years post-release supervision Friday.

“Every Boy Scout … trusted Mike with our lives,” said one of the young men, according to an official court transcript of the sentencing obtained by the Poughkeepsie Journal. “Not only us, but our parents trusted him to take us on these amazing trips, have fun, make memories and bring us home safely.”

And Kelsey taught him “so many life skills throughout the trips he took us on,” the teen added. “I learned to be more vocal, confident, daring, honorable and brave. I used these skills to tell people what he did to me.

"Throughout the years of knowing Mike, he had taught me the skills required to turn him in,” the young man continued. Kelsey “never lived up to his qualities. He has no honor and is unable to take responsibility.

“I will never be the same no matter how hard I try to make my life normal again,” the teen said. “I will never forget that Michael Kelsey molested me.”

The 38-year-old former assistant scoutmaster was found guilty in May of first-degree sexual abuse and first-degree attempted sexual abuse, both felonies, along with forcible touching and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, all misdemeanors.

Kelsey’s victims were two 15-year-old boys in 2014. During the trial, the young men testified Kelsey touched one of them and attempted to touch the other while they were sleeping during a Boy Scout camping trip at the Cranberry Lake State Campground in August 2014.

Both teens spoke up in St. Lawrence County Court on Friday before Judge Felix Catena, who presided over Kelsey’s trial. The teens asked the judge to sentence Kelsey to the maximum punishment — 11 years in prison.

READ: Victim impact statements

Rather than taking responsibility for his actions, Kelsey put the boys through a painful legal process and continues to deny what he has done, said the second young man.

“After so many years of looking up to this man, it kills me to realize that the person I thought he was is not truly who he is,” the second teen said of Kelsey. “Having a man who was so influential to me, a man who my whole Boy Scout experience rotated around for many years, having that man gain my trust and try to molest (me) put me in a huge shock.”

Kelsey also spoke, thanking his supporters.

“To my accusers, I wish them well in life,” Kelsey said. “I hope they will pursue Eagle Scout and that they would lead always towards the best.”

Kelsey is classified as a sex offender and will have to register accordingly, Catena said. A risk assessment will be conducted prior to Kelsey’s release from prison to determine how long he will have to be registered as a sex offender.

The Register Star, of Columbia County, reported that Kelsey's family hired a new lawyer, Shane Hug of Albany, soon after his trial ended. Kelsey was represented by Richard Portale during his trial.

“I was not part of this trial until after (Kelsey) was convicted,” Hug said in court Friday. “But my understanding is that just prior to trial, (Kelsey) was offered several plea bargains,” including a misdemeanor plea.

St. Lawrence County District Attorney Mary Rain had said she would pursue the maximum sentence for Kelsey.

On Friday, Rain told the Journal that representatives of her office may have discussed a misdemeanor plea with Kelsey, “but I never would have authorized such a disposition.”

Hug could not be reached for further comment on Friday.

Kelsey, who has been in St. Lawrence County Jail on no bail since his conviction, plans on appealing, according to the court transcript.

The Salt Point Republican, who represented the Dutchess County Legislature's 25th district, refused to step down from his seat after his December 2014 arrest, despite multiple requests from other local officials to do so.

In 2015, Kelsey lost his bid for reelection in a Republican primary election to Sandra Washburn.

Nina Schutzman: nschutzman@poughkeepsiejournal.com, 845-451-4518 Twitter: @pojonschutzman

More online

Visit www.poughkeepsiejournal.com to read the Journal's past coverage of the Michael Kelsey trial, including an exclusive investigation into laws mandating the reporting of suspected sexual abuse, and what lawmakers are doing to strengthen the laws.