Man who sexually abused kids gets early prison release

BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — It took decades for some women assaulted as children to get justice against their attacker. But it’s taken just a couple of years for him to get out of prison.

The North Carolina Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission says Albert R. Baldwin, 62, has been granted parole.

In October 2012, the StarNews reported that Baldwin entered an Alford plea to two counts of first-degree sex offense, two counts of statutory rape and one count of statutory sexual assault and sentenced to 10 years in prison. An Alford plea is one in which a defendant admits no guilt, but is sentenced as if he had.

The charges stemmed from allegations by several women, the daughters of family members, who said Baldwin sexually assaulted them as children as early as 1968. They finally came forward with the allegations decades later after his parents died.

The state’s current Structured Sentencing law stopped parole for crimes on or after Oct. 1, 1994. But because Baldwin’s crimes occurred before then, he is eligible for parole.

Department of Correction spokesman Keith Acree says under the old law, Baldwin’s 10-year sentenced automatically becomes five years when you apply time for good behavior and for having a job in prison. He also got credit for 570 days served in jail before his conviction. He’s being released now, Acree says, because of a mandatory parole granted to inmates who meet certain criteria 90 days before their release.