Kansas Judge in Case of 67-Year-Old Sex Offender Claims Victims, 13 and 14, Were 'Aggressor[s]'

A Kansas judge is under fire after he said that two teenage victims of a sex offender were “more an aggressor than a participant.”

Leavenworth County District Judge Michael Gibbens made the statement as he sentenced 67-year-old Raymond Soden to 5 years and 10 months in prison for soliciting two girls, ages 13 and 14, on Facebook in January 2018. According to the Kansas City Star, prosecutors had sought a sentence of more than 13 years.

While sentencing Soden, Judge Gibbens noted that the girls were partly to blame for what happened, pointing out that they voluntarily went to his home.

“I do find that the victims in this case, in particular, were more an aggressor than a participant in the criminal conduct,” Gibbens said before sentencing Soden, according to transcripts first obtained by the Kansas City Star.

According to WPTV, the judge also cited the girls’ decision to take money for sex as a reason for his lenient sentence. “They were certainly selling things monetarily that it’s against the law for even an adult to sell,” he said, according to the court transcript also obtained by NBC News.

Judge Gibbens also noted that the girls did not appear at the sentencing hearing, and questioned the level of harm that the girls suffered. The younger girl told authorities that she had felt “uncomfortable” with the sexual contact.

Judge Gibbens asked Deputy County Attorney Joan Lowdon for clarification, according to the transcripts. “She’s uncomfortable for something she voluntarily went to, voluntarily took her top off and was paid for?” he asked Lowdon.

“Yes, judge,” Lowdon responded. “She was also a 13-year-old who under our laws can’t consent to anything.”

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After the judge’s controversial sentencing comments, Attorney Lowdon questioned his rationale. According to the transcripts, the judge told her she could raise that issue upon appeal.

Leavenworth County Attorney Todd Thompson tells the Kansas City Star that his office is considering taking the matter to a higher court. “We have looked into filing an appeal, but we have not made a decision,” Thompson told the newspaper. “We always try to zealously advocate for the victims and community safety in every case we pursue.”

PEOPLE confirms that Soden had two prior criminal convictions: one for battery and one for sexual battery. He was placed onto the Sex Offender Registry on April 11, 2011, after his sexual battery conviction. The most recent case occurred nearly seven years after he was placed onto the registry.

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