Appeals court upholds Muncie man's molesting conviction

MUNCIE, Ind. — The Indiana Court of Appeals upheld a Muncie man's child molesting conviction.

A Delaware Circuit Court 1 jury in April 2023 found Kevin N. Schoeff, now 40, guilty of five counts of molesting, stemming from allegations he had repeatedly sexually abused two children.

According to an affidavit filed after Schoeff was arrested in January 2021, a child told investigators the Muncie man had sexually abused his victims over a period of approximately eight years, beginning when that victim was about 4 years old.

Schoeff told police some of the sex acts described by one of his accusers "definitely could have happened" while he was trying to tickle the child.

The Muncie man was later sentenced to 90 years in prison by Judge Judi Calhoun.

In an appeal, Schoeff contended there was insufficient evidence to support one of his convictions, a class A felony that carried up to 50 years in prison.

More: Jury finds Muncie man guilty of child molesting

In a ruling released in recent days, the Indiana Court of Appeals disagreed with that claim.

In the 3-0 decision, Judge Cale Bradford wrote that the testimony of a victim had justified the conviction.

"We conclude the state produced sufficient evidence to support Schoeff's conviction for Class A felony child molesting," the judge wrote.

Schoeff, incarcerated at the Pendleton Correctional Facility, has a projected release date in 2068, when he would be 84.

Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Indiana Court of Appeals upholds Muncie man's molesting conviction