06/19/2026
News Release: Man Pleads Guilty to Child Molestation
District Attorney Susan K. Treadaway announces that on June 15 Jarrod Donte Luster, 39, of Marietta, pled guilty to two counts of child molestation and was sentenced to 30 years, with the first 20 years in prison and the remainder on probation with s*x offender special conditions. Luster’s case was originally set for jury trial this week.
The Cherokee Sheriff's Office - Georgia began investigating this case on November 27, 2023, after a 14-year-old disclosed that Luster had touched him inappropriately when he was 8 years old. Luster was a close family friend who had frequent access to the child.
In a forensic interview, the child provided details of acts that occurred in 2018 while his mother was in the hospital and Luster was babysitting. These acts included touching the child’s inner thigh and grabbing his groin. During the investigation, three additional children from the extended family disclosed similar acts involving Luster. Those incidents occurred outside of Cherokee County.
“This defendant insidiously embedded himself within an extended family to gain access to their children. He spent years cultivating trust, grooming each child over time, and carefully selecting moments to commit his offenses. His actions were calculated and predatory,” said Assistant District Attorney Meaghan Frankish of the Special Victims Unit, who prosecuted this case on behalf of the State.
During sentencing, the court heard six impact statements describing how the defendant manipulated the family and inflicted lasting trauma.
“Jarrod became deeply integrated into our family. He attended family gatherings, holidays, and important events. We viewed him as a brother, and the children knew him as ‘Uncle J.’ He used that trusted position to form close relationships with the children,” said one of the parents during the hearing.
“The betrayal and devastation caused by Jarrod’s actions are impossible to fully describe,” said another parent. “I have grieved the relationship and person I thought Jarrod was. The facade and act he portrayed is long gone. I see this person now for what he is, an evil soul living in the carcass of a man he deceived all of us he was.”
At the conclusion of the hearing, Senior Judge Ronnie K. Batchelor sentenced Luster as negotiated, ordering that he serve 30 years, with the first 20 years in prison and the remainder on probation with s*x offender special conditions, including s*x offender registration and no contact of any kind with anyone under the age of 18. He was also ordered to have no contact with all four of the victims and their families.
The case was investigated by the Cherokee Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from Bartow County Sheriff’s Office, Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, and Gordon County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Meaghan Frankish of the Special Victims Unit, Office of the District Attorney, Blue Ridge Judicial Circuit.
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Information About Sexual Abuse of Children
Child abusers often engage in a grooming process that allows them to perpetrate s*xual abuse undetected. “Grooming” in the context of child s*xual abuse is a manipulative process intended to secure the child’s silence. Common characteristics of the grooming process include targeting the child, gaining the child and caregiver’s trust, filling a need, using flattery and gifts, isolating the child, s*xualizing the relationship, and maintaining control.
Children who have been groomed are often conflicted about their feelings for the abuser because he/she has methodically established a positive relationship with the child prior to introducing s*xual touches. Children who have been groomed are also more likely to conceal the abuse and delay disclosing the abuse to others.
To report suspected child abuse, call Child Protective Services at 855-422-4453. If the child is in immediate danger, call 911.
