Ex-academy employee sentenced for indecent contact with teen

COURTHOUSE » A former information technology employee at GwyneddMercy Academy will be under court supervision for seven years after a judge determined he had indecent contact with a 13-year-old girl who was a student at the school.

Marcus Forte, 41, formerly of the 2400 block of Linksman Lane, Warrington, Bucks County, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 17 months and 21 days already served in jail, to be followed by five years’ probation. Essentially, the sentence imposed by Judge Thomas C. Branca means Forte will be under court supervision for a total of about seven years.

Forte also must report his address to state police for 25 years in order to comply with the state’s Sexual Offender Registration and Notification Act. Branca said Forte must complete 250 hours of community service as a condition of the sentence.

The judge said Forte is prohibited from having contact with the girl and her family.

Assistant District Attorney M. Stewart Ryan sought a state prison term against Forte. Defense lawyer Philip David Press argued for a time-served sentence for Forte.

During a four-day, nonjury trial in September, Branca convicted Forte of three misdemeanor charges of indecent assault in connection with incidents that occurred between October 2015 and April 2016. Branca acquitted Forte of more serious felony charges of institutional sexual assault and unlawful contact with a minor in connection with the incidents.

With the indecent assault charges, prosecutors alleged Forte had indecent contact with the girl without her consent, by forcible compulsion and at a time when the girl was under the age of 16 and Forte was four or more years older than her.

Forte had been employed at the Lower Gwynedd school from 2013 to February 2016, according to testimony.

At the trial, the girl, now 15, testified that during an April 4, 2016, incident that occurred at her Upper Gwynedd home Forte pinned her down on a sofa and groped her breasts.

The girl later texted Forte, telling him, “You took the hugs to the extreme today,” and Forte replied, “Are you upset?” according to an arrest affidavit.

“So you don’t like my extreme hugging?” Forte asked the girl.

“No,” the girl texted back, according to court papers.

The girl, who was 13 years old and in the seventh grade at the time of the assault, testified Forte also touched her inappropriately and kissed her on the face and neck numerous times in his office behind closed doors at the elementary school between late 2015 and early 2016. Forte left the school’s employ in February 2016.

With the charges, Ryan and co-prosecutor Lucy Qiu alleged Forte touched the girl inappropriately and exchanged inappropriate text messages with her on numerous occasions.

During the investigation, detectives uncovered Facebook instant messages between Forte and the girl during which Forte wrote to the girl, “Be my friend because you’re my favorite and I love you. And come visit me more often so I can give you more hugs and smooches…and candy of course.”

Forte also provided the girl with his cellphone number and told her to text him “if you need me,” according to testimony.

But Forte, describing himself as a “hugger,” testified that while he hugged and kissed the girl he didn’t touch her in an indecent manner as she alleged. Forte admitted he would “smooch” her on the cheek and it coincided with a hug.

Forte admitted he told detectives he engaged in “extreme hugging” with the girl, describing it as a “bear hug” or picking her up off the floor during a hug, but claimed his contact with the girl was not inappropriate.

Press characterized Forte’s use of terms such as “smooches” as “Marcisms,” saying that’s the way Forte talked to everyone, including his dog.

Press argued that prosecutors attempted to use text messages to convict Forte of indecent assault without having other sufficient evidence.

During the trial, Press suggested the girl was not truthful and he questioned why she did not tell anyone about the incidents at the time they occurred. Press also implied the girl’s statements regarding the incidents to a psychotherapist and detectives were inconsistent and could not be trusted because of various “discrepancies.”

Press suggested Forte was trying to be a father figure to the girl and that none of his contact with the girl was for sexual gratification.

Testimony revealed that in a statement Forte gave to police he said he may have inadvertently touched the girl’s breast during “extreme hugging.”

The investigation of Forte began in June 2016, according to testimony and a criminal complaint filed by Upper Gwynedd Detective Raymond Royds when the girl disclosed to a psychotherapist some of Forte’s inappropriate conduct. The psychotherapist immediately informed the girl’s mother and contacted the proper authorities.

The girl disclosed to authorities that when she was home sick from school on April 4, Forte picked her up and took her to a Starbucks for coffee. When Forte took the girl home, he entered her home despite her saying “bye” and began touching Powerball (Dec. 16): 9-35-37-50-63 Power Ball: 11 Power Play: 2 Mega Millions (Dec. 19): 28-37-39-42-58 Mega Ball: 2 Megaplier: 3 All numbers unofficial until validated.

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“(The girl) advised she didn’t know what to do,” Royds wrote in the arrest affidavit, alleging Forte then got on top of the girl, touched her in an indecent manner and tried to kiss her.

The girl told detectives Forte “literally tried to make out with me,” according to the arrest affidavit. The girl said “she kept her lips sealed and told him to stop while Forte ignored her.”

The girl eventually was able to make her way to her kitchen but Forte followed and accosted her again by kissing and touching her inappropriately, according to testimony. The girl told Forte that her mom was on her way home soon and Forte finally left, prosecutors alleged. Pick 6 (Dec. 18): 3-5-20-34-35-49 Xtra: 5 Cash 4 Life (Dec. 18): 8-9-12-21-45 Cash Ball: 1 Check out the lottery Master’s blog