[StBernard] Child pornography, molestation bring five-year sentence

[Westley Annis]

Child pornography, molestation bring five-year sentence
by The Times-Picayune 
Thursday July 30, 2009, 6:55 PM
A 59-year-old man has been sentenced to five years in prison after pleading
guilty to sexual battery and possession of child pornography in a case that
predates Hurricane Katrina, authorities said.

Robert Carmouche, a former Chalmette resident now living in Metairie, was
sentenced Tuesday by state District Judge Manny Fernandez, who ordered
concurrent, five-year sentences on each guilty plea.

The sexual battery involved a juvenile boy, authorities said.

Carmouche, who was arrested in February 2005, pleaded guilty to one count of
oral sexual battery, although authorities said he sexually molested two
juvenile boys. In addition to jail time, Carmouche was ordered to pay
$10,000 to both victims, who are now adults, St. Bernard Parish Sheriff's
Office spokesman Steve Cannizaro said.

After his initial arrest for sexual battery, Carmouche was booked on 221
counts of possession of child pornography. He pleaded guilty to one count.

Now free on $50,000 bond, Carmouche, a disabled musician, must report Dec. 1
to St. Bernard Parish Prison. He will later be assigned to a state prison by
the Department of Corrections, Cannizaro said.

Carmouche's son, Kevin Carmouche, 31, a fifth-grade teacher in the Jefferson
Parish public school system, was booked in 2005 with 2,440 counts of
possession of child pornography. The younger Carmouche, who lives in
Metairie and remains under suspension from his teaching job, is awaiting
trial in St. Bernard, authorities said