Former Angelina County Commissioner Sentenced to 80 Years for Sex Crimes Against Children

LUFKIN, Texas (KTRE) – A former Angelina County commissioner was found guilty of child sex crimes and sentenced to 80 years in prison.

Robert Garrison Cheshire, 56, of Diboll, was charged with four counts of aggravated sexual assault and one count of indecency with a child. Cheshire, a former county commissioner, was last booked into the Angelina County Jail on Aug. 22. On Friday, a jury found him guilty on all five charges.

Guest Judge John Delaney imposed four sentences of 40 years’ imprisonment and one sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment. He received two of the 40-year sentences.

The case was prosecuted by San Jacinto First Assistant District Attorney Rob Freier after the Angelina County District Attorney withdrew from the case.

On Friday, the state brought to the stand 10 witnesses who Freier said had been harassed by Cheshire for decades.

“Bobby Cheshire is a despicable, rotten man,” Freyer said after the sentencing. “This will happen 35 years ago. These women he beat can move on. The system has failed them time and time again, but not this time.”

Freyer said he offered Cheshire “a very generous plea offer” before the trial.

“We respect the defendant’s right to a jury trial,” Freier said. “But he re-victimized these women when the evidence against him became overwhelming.”

Cheshire has been serving a sentence for persistent abuse of a family member since 2019 and was arrested on a Polk County warrant for aggravated sexual assault of a child in 2022 before his arrest in August on Angelina County charges.

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