Accused child rapist Garrison M. Salyer waived his right to a preliminary hearing before Hillsboro Municipal Court Judge David McKenna Tuesday morning, who said the case will now go to a Highland County grand jury.
Salyer and his attorney, J.D. Wagoner, faced the bench as McKenna requested that Salyer confirm his signature on the waiver form as he held it up.
“By signing this waiver form, we’re not going to have this hearing, I’m not going to hear any further evidence and this case will go on to the grand jury,” McKenna said, “and the conditions of your bond will remain the same.”
In an April 22 affidavit filed with the court, the 25-year old Hillsboro man is facing a first-degree felony charge of rape of a minor under the age of 10 after admitting to a counsellor that he sexually abused his own son.
Municipal court documents showed that in a recent session with a counselor, Salyer confessed to sexually abusing his then-1-year-old son on multiple occasions in 2019.
The affidavit said a counsellor contacted Highland County Children Services after Salyer’s confession, who in turn asked the Hillsboro Police Department for assistance prior to going to Salyer’s residence at the apartments on Treewood Drive.
An officer stated in the affidavit that when they arrived on the evening of April 21, both Salyer and his wife were advised as to why officials were there, with Salyer later admitting to both the officer and the Children Services representatives that he had perpetrated sex acts on his son, describing in detail what he had done.
At that point, Salyer was arrested and advised of his Miranda Rights, and was questioned further about his actions of 2019.
He also admitted in the affidavit to viewing child pornography that had been sent to him via “the dark web,” and then later deleting it from his phone.
Police confiscated two cell phones and a desktop computer during his arrest, with Salyer telling N officer that the phones would contain child porn images, but he had deleted them in the hope that they could not be recovered.
Salyer is still lodged in the Highland County Jail on a $100,000 cash or surety bond.
According to online information from the Ohio Revised Code, if convicted, Salyer could be sentenced to life imprisonment without parole, and be designated a Tier III sex offender.
Reach Tim Colliver at 937-402-2571.
