Prison Time for The Perverted Dad
Former Political Figure Imprisoned for Sexual Misconduct Toward Daughter Following Gaming Adventure in Las Vegas
In a harsh justice served, ex-politician John Jessup, 50, has received a 6-15 year sentence for sexually assaulting his own daughter during a disastrous weekend in Las Vegas filled with gambling, drinking, and depravity.
With tears streaming down her face, Rachel Keesling, Jessup's devastated daughter, arranged the pieces of her shattered life before the court. "Since my biological father sexually assaulted me on Jan 26 last year, my life feels like it's shattered," she shared.
The vile incident unfolded during a 21st birthday celebratory trip to Sin City. The duo started the night at Harrah's Las Vegas, where Jessup encouraged his daughter to drink despite her exhaustion after three Long Island iced teas. According to court records, he continued to provide her with alcohol throughout the night, and the criminal act occurred in their hotel room when she was blacked out.
A Fateful Night
As the night progressed, Jessup insisted Keesling keep up with his heavy drinking habits. When she expressed her inability to continue, he infamously stated, "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas."
The prosecution alleged that he then took his daughter to a strip club, abandoning her at the bar while he headed to a private room. When Keesling began vomiting, they returned to their hotel room, where Jessup needed a wheelchair to aid his incapacitated daughter to their room.
In court records obtained by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Keesling shared that she found herself naked with Jessup touching her when she regained consciousness. "Once she moved, he stopped," she stated, recounting how he then apologized.
Demanding Justice
At the Regional Justice Center courthouse in Las Vegas on Thursday, Keesling pleaded for the maximum prison sentence. She revealed that after voters in Indiana elected her father as Councilman despite the sexual assault allegations, she decided to come forward publicly as the victim of his heinous actions.
Deputy District Attorney Morgan Thomas confirmed that what Jessup did was "criminal, and it was a sexual assault." She added, "Fathers are supposed to protect their children. They're not supposed to violate them when they are vulnerable."
Besides serving time in prison, Jessup will also need to register as a sex offender. In the meantime, his daughter continues to struggle with the physical and emotional aftermath of the horrific crime she endured. She has undergone testing for sexually transmitted diseases, attends therapy, and has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, severe anxiety, and depression.
Survivors of parental sexual assault often suffer profound mental and physical health issues, including chronic pain, gastrointestinal problems, gynecological issues, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes, among others. Legal action, including mandatory reporting, civil lawsuits, criminal prosecution, protective orders, and access to therapy and support groups, are crucial components of their recovery.
- In the courtroom on Thursday, Jessup's daughter, Rachel Keesling, requested a maximum sentence for her father's 21st birthday crime in Las Vegas, which involved assaulting her in their hotel room after a night of heavy drinking and gambling at the H2 casino-and-gambling in Las Vegas, as detailed in court records.
- Keesling, who was already experiencing exhaustion after three Long Island iced teas, was encouraged by her father to drink more and later found herself naked and assaulted in their hotel room, as she shared in her statement to Las Vegas Review-Journal.
- Despite the sexual assault allegations against John Jessup, voters in Indiana elected him as Councilman. However, after this public service role, he was sentenced to 6-15 years in prison for the crime he committed against his daughter.
- Fathers are expected to protect their children, but John Jessup, the general news reveals, violated his daughter's trust in a heinous act of crime and justice at a 21st birthday celebration in Las Vegas.
