Woman charged with rape

A Kirksville woman has been sentenced to five years in the Missouri Department of Corrections for statutory rape in the second degree.

Melissa Songer, 26, pleaded guilty to the charge in June and was sentenced Sept. 21, said Matt Wilson, Adair County prosecuting attorney. He said the charge was regarding an incident that took place in September 2008.

Wilson said Songer was indicted in May for statutory rape in the first degree, which applies when the victim is under the age of 14. This charge was later reduced to statutory rape in the second degree, he said.

Wilson said Songer will participate in a sex offender treatment program for 120 days. Upon completion of the program, he said, the judge can decide to place Songer on probation rather than require her to serve the rest of her sentence.

Wilson said the judge's decision will be based on Songer's performance in the program. He said, in such cases, it is not often that the judge releases the defendant without serving the remainder of their sentence.

Wilson said Songer had been released on bail before she was arrested on a separate charge this summer. He said she was arrested for fraudulently attempting to obtain a controlled substance. He said those charges are still pending the outcome of her program.

Upon release, Songer will have to wear a GPS tracking device for the rest of her life, Wilson said.