A shockingly good liar: Teen testifies in sex crimes trial about her pivotal realization

Editor's note: This story contains information about the alleged sexual assault of a child. If you know or suspect that anyone under 18 is being sexually or physically abused, call the Texas child abuse hotline at 1-800-252-5400.

When a 12-year-old girl decided to break free from a sexual-abuse triangle involving a Wichita Falls couple, one of her abusers showed up at her family's apartment, she testified.

Shannon Lee Wells told the child's mom and the mom's boyfriend that he had no idea what had been going on with his live-in girlfriend, Casey Lee Chapman, and the preteen girl.

"He wasn't crying, but he was acting like he was going to," the now high-school age teen testified Tuesday in 89th District Court.

Back then, she was shocked at how good Wells was at deception, according to testimony for the prosecution. After all, he had insisted she at least try to have sex with him or, he threatened, he would go to the cops about her and Chapman.

Both Wells and Chapman were trusted family friends who lived in the same complex as the girl and her family did at times, according to testimony. The confused 12-year-old thought she had a crush on Chapman, a 30-something stay-at-home mom, a sometime babysitter for the girl's family, and a former Las Vegas prostitute.

The child's confession of that crush led to Chapman's first sexual assault of her. Chapman, 40, pleaded guilty to continuous sexual abuse of a child in May and was sentenced to 30 years in prison without parole in 89th District Court.

Now at issue is the guilt or innocence of Wells for his alleged part in the abuse and exploitation of the child.

An 18-count indictment against the former apartment handyman alleges he sexually abused her from March through December of 2018. Testimony in his trial for the sex-crimes charges began Tuesday afternoon. If convicted, he faces up to life in prison for some counts and 20 years behind bars for others.

Wells pleaded not guilty to the charges Tuesday before 12 jurors and one alternate juror.

The couple urged the 12-year-old to stay quiet about their illicit activities, which included acting out "Fifty Shades of Grey" fantasies on the blindfolded child and plying her with methamphetamine, according to testimony. But she came to realize how toxic the secrets she was keeping were.

"During all of those months that the abuse was going on, I was cutting my wrists. I was hitting my head," she told the jury.

"I had a breakdown. I just remember thinking, 'I can't do this anymore,' " she testified.

The girl finally made an outcry to her mother's boyfriend that Chapman was sexually abusing her, she testified.

She told him that she had lied to her psychiatric care provider, who suspected something was going on, she told a jury during three hours of testimony Tuesday afternoon.

What she didn't say in the initial outcry was that Wells began sexually assaulting her upon discovering what was going on with her and Chapman, she testified. He had told her that his kids would go into foster care if she ever told anyone what was happening. So she remained silent about the abuse for a time.

Besides using threats and guilt to coerce her, Wells struck a twisted deal: The 12-year-old would have to try to have sex with him if she wanted to keep seeing Chapman, according to testimony. The attempts were painful to her. The 12-year-old's body shook uncontrollably in one instance.

When her mother found out about the sexual abuse involving Chapman, she cried and screamed.

"I remember her asking, 'Why didn't you come to me?' " the teen testified.

The child's mother and her boyfriend spoke on the phone to Chapman and Wells, who "asked if there was any way that we could keep this from the police," the victim told the jury.

The answer was no, the girl testified. When Wells showed up later acting clueless, she thought, "He's lying. He's lying good. How is he lying that good?"

She figured out he was dishonest all along, she told the jury.

"He was lying about him caring about me," the teenager testified.

Wells had also told the 12-year-old he and Chapman thought of her as an adult, not a child, because she was so mature, she told the jury. That was another lie.

Panic shot through the girl, and she realized she had been manipulated, the teenager testified.

During cross-examination, Wichita County Senior Assistant Public Defender Marty Cannedy sought to cast doubt on her credibility with the jury, contending she had changed her story about various things.

A witness on Wednesday shed some light on changes in the girl's disclosures.

Denise Roberts, executive director of Pasty's House Children's Advocacy Center and a trained forensic interviewer of children, took the stand to testify about her interview with the girl on Jan. 29, 2019.

The jury viewed a photo shown onscreen of the interview room at Patsy's House, as well as still shots of Roberts and the 12-year-old during the recorded interview.

“It’s just a couple of chairs, pretty bare, because we don’t want distractions,” Roberts told the jury.

She testified that the girl was soft spoken and timid at times.

“Her demeanor changed through the interview,” Roberts told the jury. “There were definitely times she got emotional. She was a little girl, very much."

They had been discussing a single abuser, she testified.

“At one point in the conversation, there came a point where she used the word, 'they,' ” Roberts testified. “When I went back and asked her for clarification on that, that is when she got emotional and mentioned Shannon.”

The child became very timid and began crying, Roberts told the jury.

The girl told Roberts she was concerned worried about the other children — Wells' children — which is why she had not disclosed the abuse allegations involving him, Roberts testified.

The 12-year-old talked about a deal with Wells, Roberts told jurors. To continue having sex with Casey, she would have to do or at least try to do things with him.

During cross-examination, Cannedy asked Roberts how many times the girl told her she had sex with Wells.

Roberts testified that at one point, the child told her it happened quite often, but then she said three times when Roberts tried to narrow down the number of incidents.

Wichita County Assistant District Attorney Chelsea Carlton questioned Roberts again in redirect.

“When I think about my job in that room, I think of it as detail gathering, truth seeking," Roberts told the jury. "My job is to find truth.”

Carlton and DA's Office Special Victims Unit Chief Brooke Grona-Robb finished presenting the prosecution's case Wednesday afternoon. Both sides are expected to rest and close not long after court begins Thursday morning.

Cannedy is not anticipated to present any witnesses, but he has requested to be able to show jurors the original four-count indictment from April 2019. It was up in the air if 89th District Judge Charles Barnard would allow it late Wednesday afternoon.

On Thursday, the judge read the charge to the jurors, which includes important instructions for them. Each side had one hour to present closing arguments. Jurors are then expected to retire to begin deliberating on a verdict of guilty or not guilty for Wells.

Trish Choate, enterprise watchdog reporter for the Times Record News, covers education, courts, breaking news and more. Contact Trish with news tips at tchoate@gannett.com. Read her recent work here. Her X handle is @Trishapedia.

This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: The good liar: Teen's testimony in Wells' sex crimes trial