FROM: HOLLEY CARNRIGHT
DATE: FEBRUARY 22, 2019
RE: PRESS RELEASE - PLATTEKILL MAN SENTENCED TO 15-LIFE FOR SEXUAL ABUSE OF STEP-DAUGHTER
Following his conviction after trial 41 year old Christopher Gertz, Jr., of Plattekill, was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison for the violent felony of Sexual Abuse in the 1stcommitted against his 12 year old step-daughter in September of 2017. Gertz lived in the same home in Plattekill with the victim and her mother at that time.
The abuse occurred at night on September 14, 2017. The child complained to her mother very early in the following morning that her “dad” (step-dad) had inappropriately touched her private areas and that he may have taken pictures with his smart phone in the process. The mother called the defendant to return home from his way to work and confronted him with the allegation. Gertz denied the allegation and commented that the 12 year old girl dreamt it.
When the mother left with the child to report the incident to the police the defendant fled from Ulster County to Indiana where he hid out. Investigators from the Ulster County District Attorney’s Child Advocacy Center enlisted the help of Fulton County Sheriff’s Department in Indiana to find and arrest him. Gertz was then extradited on November 14 of 2017 to Ulster County to answer for the sexual abuse of the child. During the investigation the defendant’s smart phone was found in the water-tank of a toilet at the home where he was hiding out.
This conviction is the third felony conviction for Christopher Gertz, Jr.; he also has five other criminal convictions. While the maximum sentence under New York law for Sexual Abuse in the First Degree is 7 years in prison, Gertz was sentenced under New York’s “three strikes rule” following a hearing to determine the appropriate sentence. County Court Judge Williams determined that Gertz’s criminal history and character warranted an extended period of incarceration and life-time supervision, especially considering his significant record of domestic violence and abuse against women. Judge Williams found Gertz to be a persistent felony offender, and sentenced him accordingly.
Christopher Gertz was represented in the trial by Kingston attorney Bryan Rounds of the Public Defender’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Emmanuel Nneji, Sr. Assistant District Attorney.