Superior man gets 8 years for sexual assault on preteen

A Superior man was sentenced Thursday to eight years in prison after admitting last month to sexually assaulting a preteen girl after allegedly smoking synthetic marijuana.

Shane Lawrence Cooper, 29, pleaded guilty in State District Court in Duluth to first-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Judge Sally Tarnowski sentenced the defendant to 96 months in prison and 10 years of supervised release after serving his sentence. He was given credit for the 230 days he already has served in custody.

Cooper also was charged with interference with an emergency call during the March 9 incident, but that charge was dismissed as part of a plea agreement. A trial had been scheduled to start on Tuesday.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant St. Louis County Attorney Nathaniel Stumme.

According to the criminal complaint:

The victim told a social worker that Cooper sexually assaulted her more than once but that when she earlier told others they didn’t believe her or didn’t have time to listen to her. The mother of the alleged victim told police that she found a vial of synthetic marijuana and a glass pipe that she believed had been used by the defendant. She said his eyes were red and he was acting strangely.

The girl’s mother told a Duluth police officer that her daughter told her she had been sexually assaulted by Cooper. She said she grabbed a telephone to call police immediately after the alleged assault, but Cooper grabbed the phone. She then took her daughter to school and reported the allegations to a school staff member. The girl was taken to the hospital.

A social worker interviewed the girl at First Witness Child Resource Center. The girl said that Cooper had sexually assaulted her more than once.

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