39-Year-old Jorge Pena was charged while living in the Murfreesboro area with three counts of "Rape of a Child" and three counts of "Aggravated Sexual Battery." Pena had sexual intercourse with a 12-year-old girl and was caught by the child's mother in 2016.
The charges came after an investigation the following day when the mother went to authorities. The case was investigated by the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office. Evidently, Pena met the child when she was only 5 and moved into the home with the childs' mother.
In 2018, Pena was found guilty by a Rutherford County Judge and sentenced to spend 40 years in prison.
Now, Pena has appealed the case suggesting that phone calls between him and the victim's mother were not properly translated from Spanish to English. However, the Tennessee Court of Appeals sided with the Rutherford County courts and denied Pena's appeal. The denial was officially filed on June 11, 2020.
Pena is currently housed in Clifton, Tennessee at the South Central Correctional Center. If he makes it to his 75th birthday in year 2056 - he will be released from prison, but remain classified as being "Violent Against Children" on the Tennessee Sex Offender Registry. He is not eligible for parole or any type of early release, according to the State of Tennessee.
Source:
Court Case: 75CC1-2016-CR-71467
Appeal: No. M2018-02082-CCA-R3-CD
