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He was found guilty of all charges, including criminal solicitation to commit involuntary sexual deviate intercourse, criminal attempt at luring a child into a motor vehicle, criminal solicitation to commit prostitution and corruption of minors.
In handing down the sentence, Court of Common Pleas Judge Anthony A. Sarcione said, "What the jury found that you did erodes the sense of security that people have in the West Chester community.
"Society needs to be protected from you, children need to be protected from you."
Sarcione imposed a sentence two years longer than the four to eight-year term that Assistant District Attorney Kim Callahan requested.
Callahan argued, "Had it not been for the victim’s training and quick thinking, it is likely that these crimes would have been completed ... and we would be looking at something much more serious."
She said that White came to West Chester because it was a neighborhood where he would not be recognized and where he thought his crime would go undetected.
Callahan said that, despite his courage, the victim had been profoundly affected by the crime.
"I get this feeling that someone is walking behind me, watching my every step, and I know there’s not ... but I don’t walk alone," the victim said.
He said that White’s actions left him feeling humiliated and degraded.
His mother said that it gave her chills.
"A parent’s worst nightmare is to have harm come to their child. To attempt an act ... is just as bad as to commit one," she said. "I ask myself, ‘What if?’"
Callahan said that White had made attempts to contact the victim and the victim’s mother from prison.
According to her pre-sentence memo, "On Feb. 8, the defendant approached Antinez Jones, a reverend who practices her ministry at the prison and who is affiliated with the victim’s church, with a message for the victim’s mother and the victim."
Callahan said that White asked Jones if he could tell them that "he loves them and is praying for them."
Callahan said this was especially alarming because Jones had no idea how White made the connection between her and the victim.
White’s attorney, Robert Donatoni, asked the court, "to construct a sentence against a backdrop of a lifetime of help and sacrifice."
Donatoni pointed to White’s "40 years of good deeds ... without a suggestion of sexual indiscretion."
Eveyln Whitefield, of Philadelphia, said that she has "nothing, but positive (things) to say about Brother Stephen."
Whitefield broke down in tears as she described how White helped her children escape the mean streets of North Philadelphia through faith and education.
"He is very inspirational to me. Without him I don’t think that they would have made it," she said. "I give him all the credit."
"Brother Stephen," she said, had even helped her pass her driving test.
Donna Robinson, also of Philadelphia, said that White willingly made financial sacrifices for her and her family.
"He’s like a brother to me," she said.
White’s wife, Laurie, said, "My husband is an excellent husband and father. His three sons adore him and miss him greatly."
When given an opportunity to address the court, White asked, "How long do I have?"
Sarcione said that, within reason, it was up to him.
"It’s part of the American justice system," he said.
White, originally of Arkansas, said that when he was 18 years old, God called on him to became an evangelist. He said that he came to Philadelphia to preach because "the Northeast is the most spiritually impoverished region."
White said that as a substitute teacher, he taught in 25 of Philadelphia’s public schools and challenged kids to resist drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, sex and profanity.
He told Sarcione he was troubled by the profanity that he heard in the prison system.
He said he was "tormented" by being separated from his children because "the biggest problem in America is bad fathers."
White added that he was a good father who wanted to be there for his children.
But before Sarcione could sentence White, there was a brief outburst in the gallery.
When Callahan said that an InternetWeb site was offering a monetary reward for information on people involved in the case, a man in the gallery interrupted the proceedings.
The man, later identified as Michael Marcavage, said, "That’s not true. That’s my Web site. She’s lying."
Marcavage, of Lansdowne, put up hishome as collateral for White’s $20,000 bail and served as a character witness during the trial.
Sheriff’s deputies removed him from the courtroom.
"There’s no proof whatsoever that the defendant had anything to do with this (the Web site)," Donatoni said. "This lunatic ... bursting out, should have nothing to do with the sentencing."
Sarcione said there was proof the site existed, but not enough that the defendant had any personal involvement with it.
According to Callahan, the Web site came to her attention through the police department, particularly West Chester Detective Stan Billie.
Callahan said that the Web site offered a $5,000 reward for information about the victim and members of the Chester County District Attorney’s Child Sex Abuse Unit, who were involved in the White case.
She said that the site named Assistant District Attorney Dave Clark, Chief Deputy District Attorney Elizabeth Pitts and herself, but did not mention the victim by name.
Callahan said that she was not sure what the intent of the Web site was or if it constituted a criminal act.
She said that she did not know what to make of Marcavage’s alleged admission.
The Web site included an e-mail allegedly written by White on Jan. 16, two days after his conviction, and asked visitors to send letters of support to White at Chester County Prison, Callahan said.
"The important thing, clearly, is that he was trying to get information related to the victim and the victim’s family," said Callahan.
After the sentence, Callahan said that she was "very pleased" with the judge’s decision.
Donatoni said that he was not dissatisfied with the sentence. He suggested that White was planning an appeal, which, he said, would be handled by a different attorney.
"It’s time to put this behind us. The jury has spoken, the judge has spoken ... now it’s time for him to live like a child should," the victim’s mother said.
