Sun May 12 18:17:19 EDT 2002

Associated Press

BRADENTON -- A minister was sentenced to 10 years in prison for fondling a child, which he will serve after finishing a seven-year sentence for a child pornography conviction.

Lawrence Kilbourn was sentenced in state court Thursday after pleading no contest to a charge of attempted capital sexual battery. He had faced a maximum sentence of life in prison for sexual battery on a child younger than 12, but he pleaded to a lesser charge and avoided a jury trial.

A federal sentence was imposed two weeks ago after Kilbourn, 44, was found guilty of possessing child pornography.

Assistant State Attorney Ed Brodsky said he agreed to the plea bargain at the request of the child's family to protect their daughter.

"The victim was asleep during the act of sexual abuse, and to this day does not know she was sexually abused," Brodsky said after the hearing.

Kilbourn was the founding pastor of Faith United Methodist Church in Bradenton and later became pastor at Forest Hills United Methodist Church in Hillsborough County. He resigned last October, shortly after his arrest.

The abuse came to light after Kilbourn's 17-year-old daughter found a videotape at home showing a man fondling a girl. The daughter recognized her father by a ring on his hand and furniture in the house and turned over the videotape to authorities.

Brodsky said the videotape showed young girls at Kilbourn's home for a sleep over and Kilbourn going from child to child.

Kilbourn pleaded guilty in February to a federal charge of receiving child pornography by computer.