Former police officer convicted of cruelty to children faces sentencing

<p>A former police officer accused of forcing a teen to have sex with him while he was on duty was sentenced Tuesday to spend 15 years in prison.</p><p>Paul Wiggins Jr. was ordered to serve 15 years of an 18-year sentence for cruelty to children. During those 15 years, he also will serve five years for making false statements and five years for violation of his oath of office.</p><p>Floyd County Superior Court Judge J. Bryant Durham Jr. also ordered Wiggins to pay a $500 fine.</p><p>A jury convicted Wiggins, 40, Dec. 5 of the three felonies. Jurors acquitted him of rape, sodomy, false imprisonment and a misdemeanor charge of sexual battery.</p><p>Wiggins was fired from the Rome Police Department after he was charged with forcing a 16-year-old girl to have sex with him.</p><p>His attorney, Christopher Twyman, said Wiggins will contest the cruelty to children conviction. The attorney said that since the charge is based on rape _ a charge Wiggins was found innocent of _ he hopes to get that conviction reversed in appellate court.</p>