A Commerce man will spend 100 years in prison for his conviction on sex abuse charges involving six young boys.
Steven Michael "Mike" Blackmon, 57, was convicted after a three-day trial in Jackson County Superior Court and sentenced Wednesday, according to a published report in The Athens Banner-Herald.
Blackmon, who was indicted on 31 criminal counts in October 2019, was convicted on 26 of those charges.
The newspaper reported there were six victims who were molested from 2011 to 2019. The crimes came to light after one of the victims reported he had been assaulted by Blackmon when he and another boy spent the night at Blackmon's home.
Blackmon had lived in Commerce for about 12 years prior to the time he was charged. The Commerce Police Department's investigation showed Blackmon gained access to his victims by volunteering with a local baseball team. He had also set up a pitching machine in the backyard of his home where the boys were invited to visit.
The newspaper report said Blackmon took the stand in his own defense to deny the charges.
Blackmon has also been implicated in similar crimes in Alabama and Tennessee.
