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Peter Ivan McNeal, former drummer for the band Cake, has been convicted on charges he molested a 3-year-old girl during a Thanksgiving dinner celebration at a Laurel Canyon home back in 2009.This was the second trial for McNeal, 46, after a mistrial was declared last April.
The incident in question took place at a home where McNeal, 46, was a guest on November 26, 2009. The victim, visiting with her parents from Massachusetts, was one of several children in attendance at the gathering, and trial testimony indicates she participated in a ball game with McNeal during the festivities.
However, the child blurted out a disturbing question after the dinner party to her parents: "Why did that man want to put his penis in my mouth?" the victim's mother testified her daughter queried. The mother also noted that the daughter specified it was the man she was playing ball with.
The victim's mother also testified that later that evening in the bath, she asked her daughter to show her what happened with the man. The mother said the girl took a metal Thermos bottle, held it to her crotch and "pushed it in my mouth'' while moving her hips to demonstrate what McNeal had done.
The family opted to file a claim in Massachusetts two years later, when their daughter brought up the incident again. The victim's parents said they waited in order to be completely certain about the allegations before pursuing a case against McNeal.
Ultimately, this was the second set of allegations brought against McNeal regarding his conduct with minor females at the time. Prior to his arrest in 2012, McNeal had been convicted on a misdemeanor charge of attempting to molest a 6-year-old girl just two weeks after the 2009 Thanksgiving gathering in question, while the drummer volunteered at a Los Angeles school. He was sentenced to three years' probation in that case.
McNeal, a father of two who has worked as a drummer, percussionist and vocalist with artists including Norah Jones and Mike Doughty, was arrested in January 2012. He was charged with one felony count of oral copulation and sexual penetration of a child under the age of 10. On Monday, in his retrial, McNeal was found guilty on both those charges. He was taken into custody today following the conviction and held without bail, according to sheriff's jail records, reports City News Service.
McNeal was the drummer for Cake during 2001-2004, replacing drummer Todd Roper, who appeared on their 2001 album "Comfort Eagle."
Sentencing is scheduled for April 25.
Previously: Ex-Cake Drummer Accused of Molesting Child May Be Retried After Mistrial
