Santa Rosa woman sentenced to 36 years for child sexual abuse, drug charges

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Judge gavel, scales of justice and law books in court. (Brian A. Jackson/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

SANTA ROSA, Calif. - A Santa Rosa woman was sentenced Thursday to 36 years in state prison after pleading no contest to multiple felony charges involving the sexual abuse of a child and providing drugs to a minor, prosecutors said. 

Christina Renee Whisman, 45, was sentenced by Sonoma County Superior Court Judge Paige Hein after pleading no contest in November to three counts of committing lewd acts on a child under 14 by force, fear or duress, one count of providing cocaine to a minor, and an additional count of child molestation, the District Attorney's Office announced Friday. 

The case stemmed from an investigation that began in May 2024, when Santa Rosa police received a report from a mandated reporter alleging that Whisman had hosted parties at her home involving alcohol, drugs and underage children, prosecutors said. 

One victim later reported years of grooming and sexual abuse, according to authorities. 

Whisman was arrested in December 2024 and later admitted to the abuse, investigators said. 

At sentencing, Hein described the crimes as "extremely hurtful and traumatic" and imposed the aggravated term of 10 years for each of the three molestation counts, plus an additional six years for providing cocaine to a minor. 

Whisman is required to register as a sex offender for life, the District Attorney's Office also said.

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