A former police officer and volunteer firefighter in Louisiana, United States, has been sentenced to chemical castration after being found guilty of sexually abusing several children.

Kedreyon K. Williams, 31, was convicted on October 1 following a jury deliberation that lasted just 39 minutes. He was found guilty of three counts of first-degree rape of a juvenile, indecent behaviour with a juvenile and possession of child sexual abuse materials.

According to reports, Williams committed the offences against multiple children between the ages of eight and 11. Some of the assaults reportedly took place at fire stations in New Roads, where he worked as a volunteer firefighter, while others occurred at his workplace and residence.

Investigators also found that he had recorded videos of some of the sexual assaults, adding to the severity of the charges against him.

Although Louisiana law prescribes mandatory life imprisonment for first-degree rape convictions, prosecutors pushed for additional punishment. The court subsequently ordered Williams to undergo chemical castration, a measure intended to reduce his sexual urges.

District Attorney Tony Clayton defended the decision, describing Williams as a dangerous child predator who had committed horrific acts against vulnerable victims.

Clayton said the sentence was also intended to reassure the victims’ families that the offender would no longer have the opportunity to harm other children.

Williams’ case is believed to be only the second known instance in the United States in which an offender has been ordered to undergo castration without volunteering for the procedure.

A similar case involved 51-year-old Carrol Ray Clark of Assumption Parish, Louisiana, who was sentenced to 35 years in prison after pleading guilty in August to child pornography possession and indecent acts involving a juvenile. He was also ordered to undergo surgical castration.

Louisiana introduced its castration law in 2008 and strengthened it in 2024. The legislation gives judges the authority to order chemical or surgical castration for certain serious sexual offences. The amended provisions also allow surgical castration to be imposed for aggravated sexual offences involving children under the age of 13, even without the offender’s consent.