Liberty man faces 82 years in prison after guilty verdict in stepdaughter abuse case
Sullivan County jurors convicted Joseph Wallace of four counts following a five-day trial.
By Marcus Reed ·
Liberty resident Joseph Wallace, 52, was found guilty of three counts of predatory sexual assault against a child and one count of third-degree rape. Sullivan County District Attorney Brian Conaty announced the verdict on Friday, Oct. 30, following a five-day jury trial.
Prosecutors presented evidence that the abuse began on July 1, 2010. On that date, Wallace sexually assaulted his 5-year-old stepdaughter while the two were alone at the family home. Jurors later found that Wallace assaulted the child again on Oct. 7, 2010. At that time, the child's mother was hospitalized after giving birth to Wallace's son.
The District Attorney's Office stated that jurors found Wallace committed additional sexual assaults between May 2012 and June 2017. The final incident presented at trial occurred in the early morning hours of Sept. 7, 2020. Prosecutors said the child's mother caught Wallace during that assault after he entered her bedroom.
Wallace was arrested on Sept. 16, 2025. The arrest followed a joint investigation by New York State Police and Child Protective Services. He is scheduled to be sentenced at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2027.
According to the District Attorney's Office, Wallace faces a maximum possible sentence of 82 years to life in state prison.
Source: Daily Voice Hackensack · original report published
