ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, January 23, 1996 TAG: 9601230086
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DIANE STRUZZI STAFF WRITER
Robert Paul Dallas buried his face in his hands, unable to watch the video he had made.
But he could hear himself goading the 8-year-old girl to undress.
"I like it when you wear a romper because then, bingo, you take off one thing and you're down to your underpants," he told the girl during a game of strip poker he videotaped.
For 15 years Dallas lured young girls from the neighborhood by giving them the free rein they often didn't get at home. "Anything went at Mr. Dallas','' Roanoke County Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Susan Cohen said in court Monday.
"It was a free-for-all" at his Capito Street home, she said.
Dallas, 50, pleaded guilty to 24 charges of sexually molesting four girls who had lived in his neighborhood. Throughout the hearing, he looked down at the table, often shielding his eyes with his hand.
Circuit Judge Roy B. Willett accepted the pleas after nearly four hours of prosecution evidence that included clips from videotapes showing Dallas in sexually explicit situations with girls. Spectators in the courtroom could not see the tapes, but were allowed to hear them.
The videotaped evidence made a guilty plea almost certain.
"It made it tough to defend," said Dallas' attorney, Charlie Phillips. "The tapes are graphic. ... Once we knew they'd be admissable, it sort of did ourselves in for a trial."
Cohen depicted Dallas as a man who won the trust of neighborhood girls by showing them attention, then gradually entering into sexual relationships with them.
He kept computer logs and written diaries of his sexual exploits, detailing the girls' names and what he did. He recorded sexual conversations with at least one girl over the telephone. He videotaped himself fondling an 11-year-old girl who was mentally retarded.
He chose to abuse girls who sought the attention he gave, Cohen said. They were emotionally needy, often coming from dysfunctional families.
"The kids didn't tell or wouldn't because of problems of their own," Cohen said. "Love and attention is what they needed."
But two girls did tell. Last March, two sisters walked into the Roanoke County Police Department and detailed 15 years of abuse by Dallas. Not until they came forward did either realize the magnitude of the case.
Through their stories, detectives uncovered Dallas' written accounts and videotapes and discovered other victims.
"The more we found, the more corroboration we had," Cohen said.
Willett convicted Dallas of 17 charges of taking indecent liberties with children, three charges of aggravated sexual battery and four charges of producing sexually explicit material with individuals under the age of 18.
Dallas pleaded guilty to 14 charges and entered an Alford plea to the remaining counts. In an Alford plea, the defendant maintains his innocence while acknowledging there is sufficient evidence for conviction.
His guilty pleas were part of an agreement that dropped 29 sexual molestation charges, including two counts of rape. Each rape charge carried a maximum life sentence.
"The plea agreement satisfies what we needed to accomplish," Cohen said. "The court is aware of the complete circumstances. [And] the victims don't have to put themselves up there."
Phillips said his client sought psychiatric help after he sexually molested the 11-year-old, mentally retarded girl.
Doctors diagnosed Dallas as a manic-depressive and placed him on lithium and Prozac, Phillips said.
"With proper medication and psychological help, [Dallas] is no threat to society," he added.
Dallas faces up to 185 years in prison. He will remain in Roanoke County Jail until his sentencing April 19.
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