A Dominican court has found Wander Franco guilty of sexually and psychologically exploiting a minor, but the former Tampa Bay Rays shortstop will not serve prison time after a judicial pardon, a legal mechanism under Dominican law by which a court acknowledges criminal responsibility but exempts a defendant from punishment, was issued following a retrial that concluded on Monday.
The ruling, delivered by a three-judge panel in the Dominican Republic, concluded that Franco was criminally responsible but had also been a victim of extortion and blackmail by the minor's mother. The court determined that these factors warranted a full exemption from punishment, effectively sparing him from incarceration despite the guilty finding.
