OC cheerleading coach gets over 174 years to life for molesting girls

 A 46-year-old Orange County cheerleading coach was sentencedThursday to more than 174 years to life in prison for molesting 10 girls in attacks dating back more than two decades.

Erick Joseph Kristianson was convicted in December of 23 felony child sexual assault counts with sentencing enhancements for multiple victims and substantial sexual conduct. Orange County Superior Court Judge Kevin Haskins sentenced the defendant to 174 years and four months to life in prison and awarded him 1,622 days of custody credits while ordering him to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.

Multiple victims told Haskins how they were traumatized by Kristianson’s abuse.

One victim described how special the defendant made her feel as a 14-year-old.

“One minute I was the happiest I’ve ever been in love and the next moment, I was discarded,” she told Haskins. “Because of the rejection and stonewalling I spiraled … I wanted to die. I hated myself.”   

She fell into abuse of alcohol and drugs, she said.

“Substances were my escape,” she said. “I barely graduated from high school.”

Another victim said in a written statement read aloud in court that the judicial process helped unburden some of the feelings she had stemming from the abuse. She said she forgave the defendant and hoped Kristianson would one day feel repentant.

Another victim said in a written statement that she still struggled with the effects.

“Because of what happened, I have deep trust issues, especially with men,” she said. “For years, I kept my experience to myself because I was afraid to be judged.”

She said she also abused alcohol and drugs “to numb the pain” and had to seek years of therapy.

“I experience thoughts and flashbacks,” she said, adding at times that they were so powerful she would have to leave work for the rest of the day and go home.

“I developed a very negative body image,” she said, adding she also struggled with an eating disorder.

“It affected my ability to be intimate,” she said. “I have lost relationships because of my fear of trust.”

As an aunt. she said she is “hypervigilant” around her niece.

“I find myself constantly worrying about them,” she said. “What was taken from me was my childhood innocence.”

Another victim said she went into coaching cheerleading and has won awards for that and for her job as a first responder. She said she’s focused on spearheading sexual abuse prevention.

“I was in a domestic violence relationship for many years,” she said, adding she has had a difficult time explaining to others why it was so hard for her to leave it.

The victim said she also struggles with intimacy and trust issues.

“But my resiliency should not lead to leniency” for the defendant, she said. “He does not deserve leniency… I am a success despite him.”

The victim characterized Kristianson as a “monster. He chose to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing. … There’s not a day I don’t think about what I’ve gone through.”

Another victim said she met the defendant when she went to a camp.

“I was targeted and groomed by a pedophile,” she said. “I believed I was special, interesting… because he told me I was. He manipulated me. … I was traumatized and still am.”

She said she was devastated when Kristianson dumped her for one of her classmates.

“I dropped out of high school and instead, got a GED,” she said.

She struggled with suicidal ideation, she said. As a mom now she would never let her children go on a camp trip unsupervised now. “I seriously doubt I will ever have closure.”

The defendant’s mother, Kristin Kristianson, told the judge she has “prayed for everyone in this court.” She said she hoped the accusers can find “closure for the rest of your life,” adding, “I know my son is not perfect. None of us are. We all do things that are wrong. We all do things that are right.”

The defendant’s mother said his crimes were when he was in his 20s and that she believes in “second chances. … He is a caring, loving person,” who shouldn’t be judged on “twenty-some years ago.”
  
Kristianson testified that he never molested any of the girls and that when he worked with some of the accusers in gyms, there were security cameras in place. He also said he didn’t lose his virginity until he was 27.

The accusers from Orange County were “living their lives until 2022,” when Kristianson was arrested in a case out of Florida, Deputy District Attorney Juliet Oliver said in her closing argument of the trial.

Kristianson was detained in November 2005 and questioned by deputies but wasn’t charged, Oliver said.

One accuser was 14 when she met him in 1999 through a YMCA summer camp while the defendant was 21.