An Indiana teen was found guilty of r@ping a non-verbal neurodivergent child.
16-year-old Landon Doty was found guilty after a two-day jury trial that concluded Wednesday, April 1.
The suspect was charged as an adult on June 12, 2025, after school bus surveillance video reportedly captured several instances of Doty allegedly assaulting the child over a period of several weeks when the suspect was 15 years of age.
Officials first became aware of Doty’s alleged actions on April 17, 2025, after a bus monitor reported seeing Doty push the child from his lap. The monitor then alerted the bus driver, and the students were separated. The incident was reported to Jennings County Schools.
Doty reportedly stated that he did not s£xually touch the other child but claimed he used “calming techniques,” with his attorney arguing that neither the bus driver nor the monitor ever observed any s£xual acts.
A June 9, 2025, filing, submitted after Doty was waived to adult court, stated that the teen was “beyond rehabilitation under the juvenile justice system” and that “it is in the best interest of the safety and welfare of the community” for him to stand trial as an adult, the outlet reported.
An officer also testified that Doty’s case “is the worst he has ever seen during his 39-year career as a juvenile probation officer,” according to the report.
Doty was found guilty on the following charges: R@pe, Child molesting, S£xual battery, Criminal confinement of a victim under four years of age, Public indecency.
A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled as of Thursday morning.
