Latrobe woman sentenced to 8-to-16 years on rape, child sex charges

Apr. 30—A 34-year-old Latrobe woman has been sentenced to 8-to-16-years in state prison Thursday for having sex with two teenage boys in a Unity home, starting as far back as 2004 and as recently as 2016.

Shanda Rae Hitchcock was sentenced by Westmoreland Judge Timothy Krieger as a result of her guilty plea Thursday to rape and multiple counts of statutory sexual assault, indecent sexual assault of a person younger than 16 and corruption of minors. Hitchcock is forbidden from contacting the victims or being in contact with minors, the judge ordered.

Hitchcock must register as a sex offender for the rest of her life and will undergo a Megan's Law assessment for convicted sex offenders. She also will undergo a sex offenders evaluation, the judge ruled.

Hitchcock, who will serve eight years of probation when released from state prison, was given credit for time served since October 2019.

Latrobe woman is accused of sexually assaulting two teenage boys — the first starting in 2004 and the second in 2016, according to state police.

Hitchcock was arrested by state police after the victims came forward in March 2019. One victim, now in his late 20s, told police he was about 14 when Hitchcock first raped him at a Unity home, according to court documents. The accuser told police the assaults occurred weekly basis between November 2004 and July 2008.

The second accuser was 14 when he said Hitchcock had sex with him at the Unity home in October 2016, police said.

Hichcock also was sentenced to three-to-12 months, to run concurrently with her charges for sex with the boys, for indecent assault on a fellow inmate at the Westmoreland County Prison in September 2020. She also pleaded guilty to those charges before Krieger.

Joe Napsha is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Joe at 724-836-5252, jnapsha@triblive.com or via Twitter .