Convicted rapist Hakeem Lee was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Thursday during a hearing at Schuylkill County Courthouse.
Lee, of Orwigsburg, was convicted of rape and other offenses back in January during a trial in which he was found guilty of laying in wait for his ex-girlfriend and then sexually assaulting her in her home one night back in March 2024.
Since this was Lee’s third conviction on a sex-based offense, Schuylkill County Court of Common Pleas Judge James Goodman was able to sentence him to life without parole. Lee had prior convictions in Bucks and Philadelphia counties.
During trial, Lee’s victim testified that Lee prevented her from getting away from him and that he physically and sexually assaulted her over the course of several hours. She said she was finally able to get away after Lee had fallen asleep and called police.
Lee has maintained his innocence and during Thursday’s sentencing hearing held in Courtroom 7 at Schuylkill County Courthouse, he took the stand and, instead of showing remorse, used it as an opportunity to blame the victim for supposedly lying and sending him to prison for life.
“Since my time being incarcerated, accused of this crime, I’ve had the opportunity to become closer to God and understand his laws,” Lee said.
Lee said he entered prison with “hatred in my heart” but has since learned to forgive the victim for what she’s done to him.
“These false allegations are not OK,” he said. “I’m sorry I’m hurting my family by being involved in a relationship. I should have listened to y’all.”
The reason the victim was lying, he said, is because she was afraid that he’d get back with the mother of his daughter. To do that, Lee claims, the victim was “mimicking” a story from a previous case of his and by doing so is “manipulating y’alls minds.”
Lee also made claims that Goodman, ADA Mike Stine, and others in the Schuylkill County judicial system were “working for the un-justice system” and even said at one point that Judges Jacqueline Russell and Chris Hobbs “own the prison.”
After making that statement, Goodman cut him off and assured him that those judges don’t own the prison. Lee said the claim was something he saw online.
Stine objected to Lee’s statements on the stand, saying he was bashing the victim.
Lee said he plans to file an appeal to his conviction because his case was not heard in front of a “jury of my peers.” In saying that, he meant to say that the all-white jury did not represent his peers and that the County intentionally stacked the jury to have that racial make-up.
Two other family members testified and pleaded with Stine and Goodman to have leniency when sentencing Lee, arguing he was a good person. Lee’s first cousin, Precious Lee, said she wanted to speak at his allocution as a means of “asking for a miracle” and called him “a good person, a good father, and a good son.”
Prior to Thursday’s sentencing, Lee was also found to be a sexually violent predator.
COMMONWEALTH v. HAKEEM LEE COVERAGE:
- Orwigsburg Man Charged With Rape
- GUILTY: Jury Convicts Orwigsburg Man of Rape
- Convicted Rapist Denied New Lawyer Ahead of Sentencing
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