Staff report
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Jermaine Lamorris Godbolt, 42, has been sentenced to life in prison after a non-jury trial found him guilty of two counts of engaging in sexual activity with a child under 12 while serving in a custodial role. Senior Judge William Slaughter imposed two life sentences. Both charges are capital felonies.
Godbolt was arrested in May 2022 and has remained in the Alachua County Jail since then. A sworn complaint filed in January 2021 followed an incident in which the victims’ grandmother saw a text message sent to one of the girls stating that she had been raped. After asking the child about the message, the grandmother learned that the two sisters had allegedly been raped “every day” for several years, from the ages of 5 to 8, while Godbolt was dating their mother. During a forensic interview, one victim said Godbolt threatened to “kill everybody” if she revealed the abuse.
The case continued for years as Godbolt repeatedly dismissed his attorneys and filed motions on his own behalf. The trial took place on September 1 and September 17, with the life sentences issued on September 17.
