Micanopy Man Arrested for Sexual Battery on A Child

MICANOPY ‒ A 63-year-old Micanopy man was arrested on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024, and charged with sexual battery on a victim under 12 years old after allegedly touching a young girl who was sleeping over with a friend at his house.

The victim reportedly disclosed the incident on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, and said she had slept over with a girl who sometimes visited Reese’s house. She said that she and the other girls were watching a movie when Willie James Reese called for them. The other girls appeared to be asleep at that time.

Reese eventually called the victim and told her to come to his room and sit on his bed. She said he touched her inappropriately and it hurt; she said she asked him to stop, but he continued until he decided he was done. The victim said this only happened once, but Reese had previously touched the girls’ buttocks, over their clothes, “as a game.”

Reese has six convictions for infractions related to driving without a valid license between 1994 and 2008 but no other criminal history.

Judge Kristine Van Vorst ordered him held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s Office to hold him without bail until trial.

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