A CHILD’S COURAGE: Ontario girl finds strength to face abuser

She was just 9 when she stepped to the witness stand to face the 230-pound man who had abused her.

Circuit Judge Lung Hung assured Serenity Daniels that she was safe in his courtroom.

Hung listened to the youngster describe how Juan “Johnny” Cuellar, 51, abused her three years earlier when she was age 7 – a first-grade student.

When the trial in February was over, Hung found Cuellar guilty of four sex crimes related to two abusive episodes that occurred in Serenity’s Ontario home in 2022.

Malheur County District Attorney Dave Goldthorpe urged a lengthy sentence.

“Our hope,” the prosecutor told Hung, is that Cuellar “spends the rest of his life behind bars.”

With that Hung, sentenced Cuellar to 50 years in prison – a sentence to be served as he finishes time in Idaho prison for a drug conviction.

Now, Serenity is focusing on life as a fourth grader. With her mother, Tia Garcia Castillo, she decided she wants to let her identity be known. The Enterprise typically doesn’t use the names of abuse victims but agreed in this circumstance to the wishes of Serenity and her family.

Since the abuse, the family moved to another Oregon city, leaving Ontario behind as the investigation and prosecution of Cuellar proceeded.

“I was afraid to say stuff to him because I don’t want to get hurt like my mom does.”

–Serenity Daniels, now 10

Court records show Cuellar moved west to Idaho from Texas. That was after he was released from prison there, serving about seven years for sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl, Texas state records show.

He built a criminal record in Idaho, including a conviction in Owyhee County in 2010 for failing to register as a sex offender. He also has theft, burglary and drug charges.

In a 2020 court filing, his attorney sought leniency for Cuellar on yet another prison sentence.

“He acknowledges that methamphetamine use has caused problems in his life with his family, his employment and law enforcement,” a court filing said.

“I don’t want prison to be my life,” Cueller told a state investigator. “I’m getting up in age and don’t want to waste my time away.”

Cuellar had been out of Idaho prison for less than a year when the he fell under investigation in Ontario. By then, he was living with Castillo and two of her children.

Sgt. Jon Laurenson of the Ontario Police Department took a call about a trespass complaint, responding to Castillo’s home on April 27, 2022.

He soon heard the allegation of sexual abuse and arranged for Serenity to meet a specialist at the STAR Center in Ontario who was trained in interviewing abused children.

Serenity shared what had been happening in her home, according to transcript excerpts submitted in court filings.

She described how Cuellar “grabbed my mom by her hair and put a lighter to her hair and told her if she doesn’t stop yelling, he will burn her hair,” according to a transcript.

“I was afraid to say stuff to him because I don’t want to get hurt like my mom does,” she said.

When the police came, “I cried and said the officer should stay or we are going to be dead.”

Her mother said in a recent interview with the Enterprise that her daughter also sought help at school.

“Serenity went to her principal and told her, ‘He’s going to kill my mom if you don’t help,’” Castillo said. That prompted the family to be moved into protective custody for a few days.

“Serenity missed so many days of school, either because I was afraid to let her out of my sight or because she was so tired from the nightmares the night before,” her mother would later testify.

Serenity was aware of Cuellar’s ties to Idaho.

“Serenity watches license plates on cars and points out all the Idaho license plates and is terrified that someone is going to hurt her because of her coming forward,” Castillo told the judge at one proceeding. “She no longer found joy in being a child. She was afraid to go to her bus stop.”

Castillo took her children out of school, home schooling for 18 months.

Laurenson said he built the case against Cuellar, who by the spring of 2022 was in jail in Caldwell on a drug charge. He said an investigator attempted to question Cuellar but he asserted his right to remain silent.

On May 13, 2022, Cuellar was indicted by a Malheur County grand jury for his abuse of Serenity.

By then, Serenity and her family had moved from Ontario. They found help from an unexpected source, a local chapter of Bikers Against Child Abuse. The group works with law enforcement and government officials as they work with children.

Castillo said the group immediately provided support. About 100 riders showed up at their home, each introducing themselves and giving Serenity her own “biker” name – Blaze. They presented her with a jacket adorned with the group’s patch.

From then on, Castillo said, group members checked regularly on Serenity. Members escorted her to every court hearing, including ones where Serenity wasn’t required. The girl opted to be present for most proceedings before the trial.

The trial convened in Hung’s courtroom in Vale on Feb. 14. That was 11 days before Serenity would turn 10.

Laurenson testified, as did the expert who had interviewed Serenity. The video of that interview was played in the courtroom.

Serenity took the stand, where Hung gently questioned her about knowing right from wrong, between the truth and a lie.

“That little girl was my strength,” her mother said later. “I know it should be the other way around.”

She said her daughter believed that speaking out against Cuellar “was the only way to keep me alive,” Castillo said. “He continuously told her he would kill me if he found out she told.”

At the subsequent sentencing on March 12, Serenity’s relatives spoke in person or through statements.

“She can feel safe and never has to worry about being unsafe,” her older sister said. “My sister is the bravest person I know and she always will be.”

Her grandfather said in a statement that Serenity’s life would forever be changed. Still, he said, she had been a “strong voice.”

“She has it in mind to be a counselor for abuse victims while most kids her age want to be astronauts or firemen or doctors or airline pilots,” he said.

Castillo asked that Cuellar be kept from ever having the chance to abuse another child.

“My only wish today is that my daughter’s bravery and her courage to stand up to this man, right here, at 10 years old, is seen and heard,” Castillo said.

Cuellar was unrepentant when given the chance to speak.

“I still claim my innocence,” he said.

Hung then invoked Oregon’s version of Jessica’s Law, which mandates lengthy sentences in cases involving victims under 12. He sentenced Cuellar to 25 years in prison on each of the two charges – to be served consecutively.

Laurenson said “this was probably one of the more serious cases I’ve investigated” of child sex abuse. “Something of this magnitude is rare.”

After the sentencing, Serenity decided “not to be scared of having her name out there,” and appeared in a TikTok video.

“She’s started to share her story herself,” Castillo said. “She wants to help other kids that haven’t been heard.”

This article was originally published by the Malheur Enterprise, which shares ownership with Salem Reporter.

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