Morrisville Man Sentenced To Jail For Repeated Rape Of A Woman

MORRISVILLE, PA — A man from Morrisville was sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison for the repeated rape of a woman on Thursday, Dec. 9.

Joseph Exume, 51, was sentenced by Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey L. Finley after the court found him guilty of rape and sexual abuse of a woman who was living in his home.

Exume plead guilty to one count each of rape by forcible compulsion, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse by forcible compulsion, and unlawful contact with a minor.

The victim, now 24, said Exume had begun raping her when she was 16. She had emigrated from Haiti and was living with Exume while staying in the United States. Exume had made her believe he was her biological father while the years of abuse had been happening. He admitted that this was not the case several years ago.

The last incident occurred in May and the victim reported him to the police. He was arrested in June as a result. This came after years of physical and emotion abuse inflicted on the victim by Exume.

The victim said he continued the abuse for so long because he used her family as leverage; he was the main financial supporter of the family and threaten to cut funds if she said anything pertaining to the abuse.

“The courage that it took for this young woman to stand up to this defendant, despite his psychological and physical hold on her is nothing short of amazing,” said Deputy District Attorney Mary Kate Kohler.

“She deserves to be commended for taking charge of her life and her body despite all the unknowns. She is a wonderful young woman who is determined not to be defined by this defendant’s actions. I am confident she will do great things.”

The victim made a comment in a victim impact statement, saying “I am grateful to all the people that helped me get out and start a new life. As for my feelings on sentencing, I do not want [Exume] to ever be able to manipulate and take advantage of anyone like that again.”