A jury convicted a 61-year-old Marion County man on Wednesday for multiple child sex offenses following an investigation that relied heavily on forensic interviews and physical evidence. Terry Franklin Pennington was found guilty of three counts of lewd and lascivious battery and one count of lewd and lascivious molestation. Both charges apply to offenses against a child older than 12 but younger than 16.

Investigation Details

Authorities took Pennington into custody immediately after the verdict. He will remain behind bars until his sentencing hearing, which is scheduled for July 16 at 1 p.m. The case began on July 22, 2025, when the Department of Children and Family Services alerted the Marion County Sheriff’s Office about a sexual offense involving a juvenile. Sergeant Larocque from the Special Victims Unit took the lead on the investigation.

Investigators discovered that Pennington had sexually battered the 14-year-old victim over the course of a month. According to the sheriff’s office, Pennington gave the teenager marijuana to consume before the assaults took place. The victim later completed a forensic interview at Kimberly’s Center for Child Protection. During this recorded Child Protection Team interview, the teenager detailed the ongoing incidents.

The information provided by the victim gave investigators crucial details that corroborated the other evidence they were collecting. Deputies brought Pennington in for questioning on August 1, 2025. He confirmed several facts the victim had mentioned during the forensic interview. However, Pennington explicitly denied having sexual intercourse with the teenager.

DNA Evidence

The case was ultimately solidified by laboratory results. Investigators collected DNA from both the victim and Pennington, sending the samples to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for analysis. The final report proved that DNA found on the victim’s person was a direct match to Pennington.

Original reporting: Tampa Free Press — read the source article.