SC circuit judge: $14 million to sex abuse victim

MONCKS CORNER, S.C. (AP) — A South Carolina Circuit Court judge has awarded a 27-year-old woman more than $14 million dollars in civil damages against a former relative who sexually abused her as a child.

Circuit Judge Stephanie McDonald says the woman should get $7 million in punitive damages and slightly more than $7 million in actual damages.

The judge on Tuesday found Donald Baxter committed sexual assault, sexual battery and intentionally inflicted emotional distress on the victim.

Baxter had pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and battery in 2003 and served two years of probation.

The woman’s attorney, Joseph Griffith, says she pursued a civil case because she felt the 2003 sentence was too lenient. A call to Baxter’s attorney wasn’t immediately returned.