CT man accused of sexually assaulting teenage girl balks at plea deal

A Connecticut man who allegedly took a teenage girl into a relative's basement and sexually assaulted her despite her pleas for him to stop must choose between a five-year prison sentence or rolling the dice at a trial.

Aaron Davis, 31, of Middletown, was scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday in a virtual hearing in New Britain Superior Court, but he hesitated at the last moment when a judge informed him he might not receive credit for the time he had already spent behind bars.

In April, Davis pleaded guilty as part of Alford's plea to one count of second-degree sexual assault. A plea from Alford means he disputes some of the allegations, but believes prosecutors likely have enough to convict him at trial.

According to prosecutors, in January 2020, Davis, then 27, corresponded with a 14-year-old girl on Instagram before picking her up from her home. The girl did not tell her parents she would be with him and instead said she was attending a sleepover, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors say Davis drove the girl to her relative's home and brought her to the basement, where he sexually assaulted her. The girl asked him to stop, but he allegedly held her arms down and continued, prosecutors said.

The girl then reported the incident and was taken to an area hospital, where a rape kit was used.

Davis' attorney, Christopher Eddy, said during the hearing that his client accepted Alford's plea because he disagreed with some of the charges prosecutors made. He acknowledged that Davis was linked to the incident by “scientific evidence.”

The plea deal Davis accepted would include a 20-year sentence suspended after serving five years in prison — nine months of which is a mandatory minimum based on the charge — followed by 15 years of probation. He would also be required to register as a sex offender for 10 years and would be issued a lifetime protective order prohibiting him from contacting the victim.

Prosecutors said the deal was a “fair” decision given the evidence linking Davis to the assault and that the plea bargain would spare the victim the trauma of having to testify.

Davis was set to be sentenced Wednesday before Judge Maureen Keegan informed him there was no promise he would receive credit for the time he spent in jail while the case was tried.

Keegan said Davis had previously been sentenced in Middletown Superior Court for an unrelated case and at this point all of his time behind bars was applied toward this sentence.

Prosecutors in the sexual assault case had initially proposed a prison sentence that would be suspended after serving eight years, but reduced the incarceration period knowing that Davis might not receive credit for time already served, according to Keegan .

“If I had known that, I never would have taken that plea,” Davis said. “No one ever told me that.”

“It’s crazy,” he said.

During the hearing, which Davis attended via a video conferencing platform, he told Keegan that he was under the impression that three years he spent in prison would apply to the five-year sentence of prison he was about to receive.

Keegan told Davis that the Connecticut Department of Corrections ultimately makes the decision on how much custody applies to the sentences handed down. She abandoned sentencing proceedings just before imposing the prison term and encouraged Eddy to get a better idea of ​​how much prison credit Davis will receive.

Keegan continued the case until next Tuesday and informed Davis that he should be ready to be sentenced that day. Otherwise, Keegan said he could withdraw his plea for Alford and show up for trial.

Davis remains held on $300,000 bail while awaiting sentencing.