St. Louis Park man sentenced to 10 years for sexual assault against 8-year-old niece

*Disclaimer: Criminal complaints are based off law enforcement’s and prosecutor's interpretation of what a defendant did. They should not be considered factual by the public. All those charged with crimes are innocent until proven in a court of law. Any accusation in the below story comes from court documents unless expressly noted.*

MINNEAPOLIS – A 26-year-old St. Louis Park man was sentenced in a Hennepin County courtroom to 120 months in prison for sexually assaulting his 8-year-old niece in February.

Tyrone Rice Jr. was convicted of felony second-degree criminal sexual conduct involving contact with a child under 14 as part of a plea deal with the Hennepin County Attorney's Office.

Rice was initially accused of sexually assaulting the girl on two separate occasions in February.

"She doesn't understand why this happened to her by someone she loved," the girl's mother said in court, adding that the girl suffers from night terrors now.

Misfits Media does not publish the names of sexual assault survivors or their family members without consent or a criminal charge.

A felony count of first-degree criminal sexual conduct involving penetration with a child under 14 was dismissed as part of the plea.

Prosecutors also agreed to a lighter prison sentence because Rice admitted his guilt and saved his niece from having to testify in court, Senior Hennepin County Attorney Dan Allard told Judge Marta Chou in court.

Allard said the state objected to any sentence less than 10 years.

Rice's lawyer, Daniel Provencher, asked for probation, citing Rice's troubled upbringing.

Rice was sexually assaulted by two adults in positions of authority when he was 10 years old and he watched his brother be shot to death when he was a teenager, Provencher told the court.

"Hurt people, hurt people," Provencher said.

Rice apologized for his actions in a statement to the court.

Judge Chou said while she appreciated Rice's guilty plea now saves his niece from a court trial, the seriousness of his crime does not warrant only probation.

In addition to his 10-year prison sentence, Rice will serve 10 years of supervised release and must register as a predatory offender. He was credited with nine days served.

Following Chou's ruling, a man who identified himself as Rice's father stood up and chastised both Chou and the victim's family for the prison sentence. He was escorted out of court by over a half-dozen Hennepin County Sheriff deputies.

***For help following a sexual assault, please visit the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault to find advocacy and medical services.***