Guilty plea entered in sexual assault case
A Butler man pleaded guilty in a sexual assault case Wednesday, and is expected to be sentenced to state prison following a sexual offender assessment.
Justin T. Gould, 28, pleaded guilty to felony aggravated indecent assault by forcible compulsion before Butler County Judge William Shaffer.
The plea agreement calls for a sentence of 22 to 44 months in state prison, followed by probation. He also is expected to be ordered to pay restitution, fines and court costs, as well as be required to register as a sexual offender for life.
Shaffer ordered that a Sexual Offenders Assessment Board evaluation be conducted within 90 days to determine if Gould is a sexually violent predator.
Gould was initially charged with felony rape by forcible compulsion, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse by forcible compulsion, sexual assault, aggravated indecent assault by forcible compulsion, misdemeanor simple assault, indecent assault by forcible compulsion, indecent exposure and summary harassment after an assault that state police said occurred in the 300 block of Edgewood Drive, Cabot, Winfield Township, between 2:30 and 10:56 a.m. March 6, 2015.
Gould was charged in June 2015, and posted $25,000 bail.
He remains free pending sentencing.
Police filed the charges after a woman interviewed at Butler Memorial Hospital emergency room reported that while at a party, she and a friend got sick after drinking with Gould and his girlfriend, according to court documents.
The friend told police that she was concerned she and the victim had been drugged because they were the only two that got sick, the document states.
The victim reported that the group made their way into the bathroom while the two were vomiting, and Gould was rubbing her back, before he fondled her.
The friend reported seeing Gould fondle the victim under her shirt, thinking it “strange,” but was then helped to bed by Gould's girlfriend and did not wake up until the next morning, the document states.
The victim reported that Gould later raped her, the document states.
The woman reported that Gould placed his hand over her mouth during the assault, and she didn't remember anything else. She woke up the next morning in her friend's bed, according to the criminal complaint.
