Santa Maria youth basketball coach to face trial on molestation charges

A man who served as a Santa Maria youth basketball coach will face trial on child-molestation charges despite his alleged victim recanting her claims in court Monday.

At the end of a three-hour preliminary hearing, Santa Barbara County Superior Court Judge Gustavo Lavayen ruled there is sufficient evidence for Ramoan Blackmon to stand trial. Blackmon, executive director of Cal Hoops Elite Basketball Academy, is charged with four counts of lewd and lascivious acts on a child, with allegations that some of the acts occurred when the alleged victim was 13 or younger and others when she was 14 or older.

Because the girl claimed she had lied about the molestation, Lavayen said it became apparent the preliminary hearing’s outcome would require judgment about the girl’s credibility.

“Considering all of the circumstances together and considering her testimony and demeanor in today’s hearing, at this time I do not find that her recantation is credible, so I’m going to hold Mr. Blackmon to answer,” the judge said.

The girl testified about first telling her school counselor Nov. 16 about Blackmon’s inappropriate touches, repeating the story to police officers. She told police that Blackmon touched her breast, buttocks and vagina at different times. But she claimed Monday she had lied, saying she wanted attention. She recalled a friend’s personal problems in seventh grade.

“I wanted the feeling she had. Sorry,” she said. “I craved it.”

Crying through a lot of her testimony, the girl at one point sobbed, putting her head onto her arm.

Several times the girl answered with “I don’t remember” to questions from Deputy District Attorney Brandon Jebens.

She also denied she was encouraged to change her story.

After the preliminary hearing, the defense attorney asked the judge to reduce Blackmon’s $100,000 bail. The judge denied the bail-reduction request before setting Blackmon’s arraignment hearing on the charges for Jan. 3. Blackmon has remained in Santa Barbara County Jail since his arrest.

The defendant was accused of having sex with a minor and other charges in 2004, but the charges were reduced to a misdemeanor in a plea in 2005. Deputy Public Defender Addison Steele said his client successfully petitioned the court in 2011 to have the charge dismissed.

This story was originally published December 20, 2016 at 1:28 PM with the headline "Santa Maria youth basketball coach to face trial on molestation charges."