Most Butler area residents probably will never know what admitted child sexual abuser Donald Rasely told the court at his sentencing hearing before Judge William Shaffer last Friday.

During the brief statement, Rasely, a prominent member of the local arts community, wept and spoke so softly that few people, besides the court stenographer and presumably the judge, were able to discern his words or the message he was trying to convey.

After the hearing, Mike Zunder, Rasely's attorney, said his client had apologized to the community, his family, the victim and the victim's family.

Still, all in the courtroom should have been allowed to hear what Rasely had to say when he said it. The lawyer's synopsis in this high-profile case that deeply troubled the community — and, actually, continues to do so — was insufficient from the public's standpoint.

The judge should have called a brief recess to the proceeding to allow Rasely to regain his composure, then directed him to speak clearly and audibly, so all in the courtroom could hear. If no one else, at least the victim and his family deserved such consideration.

Members of the victim's family said they too were unable to hear what Rasely was saying during the time he was addressing the court.

Anyone has the right to obtain a transcript of the hearing, once the testimony has been transcribed. However, obtaining that transcript will involve a cost, and the public shouldn't have to pay for something that it had a right to know immediately from an open court proceeding.

By way of the sexual assault for which he pleaded guilty, Rasely, 57, halted a career in the arts that had benefited the community in many ways. He also destroyed the confidence and trust he had engendered in many of the hundreds, if not thousands, of people with whom he worked over the course of many years.

His positive efforts of the past will now carry the stigma of having been associated with an admitted sex offender.

That should be deeply troubling to the arts community, as well as to members of the public who have watched approvingly as an emphasis on the arts has continued to build in the community, in significant part due to Rasely's efforts.

Due to his visibility in the community, the community had a right to know exactly what Rasely told the court in trying to bring his legal troubles to closure.

Unfortunately, the community was denied that immediate opportunity for closure, and many people here are dismayed by that.