Santa Rosa Man Gets Life For Child Sex Offense

July 9, 2014

A Santa Rosa County man was sentenced to life in state prison Tuesday for child sex abuse.

Claude Russell Ratliff was found guilty of lewd or lascivious molestation by a Santa Rosa County jury earlier this year.

Ratliff, 56, had molested a nine-year old girl while she was visiting at his Milton home during August 2012. In March 2013 the child told her parents about the abuse and they took her to a Pensacola hospital, which contacted the Santa Rosa  County Sheriff’s Office. During an interview at the Gulf Coast Kids House, the girl told investigators that Ratliff had come into the room where she was sleeping and molested her from behind.  A warrant was issued for Ratliff and he was arrested on May 6, 2013.

Comments

4 Responses to “Santa Rosa Man Gets Life For Child Sex Offense”

  1. We should on July 11th, 2014 3:17 am

    BRING BACK THE HANGMAN……………

  2. Liberty said on July 10th, 2014 1:26 pm

    These people that abuse children should never see the light of day. They should be put in solitary confinement till they die, no books, no TV nothing!!! Well they should be put to death but the bleeding hearts want allow that.

  3. Molino Mom on July 9th, 2014 11:51 am

    Ridiculous,
    I couldn’t agree more. Three girls in my family were also molested by a family member including myself. We turned him in and done all the right things, but because we had a young inexperienced prosecutor who obviously had no clue-the charges were dropped to some misdemeanor child abuse charge. He served NO jail time, got 1 year probation and had to attend ONE sex offender class! Yeah, that will teach him, right?!!! He didn’t even have to register as a sex offender!
    This will never end because most are never punished. Its sickening! All I can say is if you live in Jay, you better keep your kids close to you because that great, helpful, lovable man that you think you know….may be the monster that I know lives there!

  4. Ridiculous on July 9th, 2014 9:00 am

    I was a victim of sexual abuse along with a friend, we were barely 14. For me the abuse was only a couple of months, for her it had been since she was 10. The monster who did it only got 24 years. I see stories like this and I am sickened. No child should have to experience any type of violence, their innocents should be protected. This man threatened us with knives and guns, at one point he made us watch as he put our names on a bullet. He left physical and emotional scare, ones that no matter how old you get they will always be there. I still have nightmares. How can my innocents be worth 24 years, its sad but that is how I feel. I don’t know this young girl’s situation, but the monster who did this to us was also convicted in santa rosa county. I wish he would have gotten life. I am 21; I still fear that when he gets out he will go through with the promise he made to me “You tell anyone and I will take this bullet with your name on it and shoot you.” Something has to be done, I don’t feel that our tax money should pay for these sick individuals to get a free pass in life. I have to go out and work to provide a roof over my head, food in my belly, and medical care; by the way isn’t cheap. They get all that for free!! I will say this again something has to be done.