On April 4, 2023, Marvin Scriven, 51, of Middle River, Maryland was convicted of Third-Degree Sexual Offense and Sexual Abuse of a Minor following a two-day jury trial, in the Circuit Court for Harford County. The charges are a result of an investigation by the Harford County Sheriff’s Office, which revealed that Scriven sexually assaulted a twelve (12) year old minor female victim.

Evidence presented at trial before the Honorable Elizabeth Bowen established that the victim was found by her mother and sister in the basement of an Edgewood residence on September 25, 2019, visibly upset and crying. The victim disclosed that while watching a movie with Scriven and her sister, Scriven adjusted himself in such a way that his penis became visible to the victim from the bottom of his basketball shorts. The victim further disclosed that on three occasions, Scriven pulled her hand towards his penis, forcing her to touch it, despite her attempts to pull her hand away. During the investigation, Scriven gave multiple inconsistent statements to the police when describing what had occurred between him and the victim.

Upon conviction, Special Victims Unit Chief, Assistant State’s Attorney Christopher Smith, requested that Judge Bowen revoke Scriven’s bond and hold him at the Harford County Detention Center pending sentencing. The request was granted, and he is currently being held at the Harford County Detention Center without bail. Scriven faces up to ten years for the count of Third-Degree Sex Offense and twenty-five years for the count of Sexual Abuse of a Minor. Sentencing is scheduled for September 5, 2023.

Following the trial, State’s Attorney Alison M. Healey commented, “Today justice was served in a case involving one of our most vulnerable victims, a child. This type of predatory behavior has no place in our county and community. Sexual predators will always be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law under my administration. I commend this child for her immense bravery in testifying in open court to hold her abuser accountable for his criminal acts.”

Ms. Healey thanks Assistant State’s Attorney Christopher Smith and the State’s Attorney’s Office Special Victims Unit for their compassion in walking this victim through the court process and for their diligence in preparing and presenting this case at trial. In addition, she thanks Detective Skica, Deputy Becker, Deputy Tatum, Deputy Zimmerman, Deputy Reese, and Deputy Van Helten for their thorough investigation leading to the arrest and conviction of this sexual offender.