A Vancouver man was sentenced to seven years in prison for breaking into an apartment and attempting to sexually assault a teenage girl who lives there.
Tn Billy, 19, pleaded guilty May 19 to two counts of first-degree burglary and one count of attempted second-degree rape with forcible compulsion. He was originally charged with one count of attempted first-degree rape and one count of indecent liberties, as well as three counts of first-degree burglary, two counts of fourth-degree assault and one count of felony harassment, each with sexual motivation.
Billy will be required to register and undergo treatment as a sex offender, along with treatment for substance abuse. Senior Deputy Prosecutor Kasey Vu said Billy was intoxicated during the incident. Defense attorney David Commissa said Billy is taking responsibility for what the did.
The teen’s father read a statement to the judge, in which the girl said the morning Billy came into her apartment and attempted to assault her was “one of the scariest days of my life.” The statement said Billy took her ability to feel safe in her home.
Judge Robert Lewis sentenced Billy to 84 months, which was on the low end of his sentencing range. He said Billy will also have to go before the Indeterminate Sentence Review Board before he’s released and prove he’s taken steps toward reforming his behavior.
“I want the victim to know that using the low end of the range on the indeterminate sentence is not a reflection of the crime not being serious,” Lewis said. “Instead, it’s a reflection of the defendant’s age, lack of criminal history and, hopefully, rehabilitation potential.”
Vancouver police responded at about 1:30 a.m. Sept. 4 to an apartment complex in the 7800 block of Northeast Fourth Plain Boulevard. A teen told officers that on the morning of Aug. 31 she was in bed when she heard the back door to her apartment open. She said she thought it was her mom, but then she felt someone get on top of her, the affidavit states.
She said the person on top of her, later identified as Billy, began playing with her hair. She recalled seeing him around the apartment complex but did not know him, according to the affidavit.
The teen said Billy tried to kiss her and touch her sexually. She yelled at him to get out, but he didn’t stop, she said. He then began hitting her with a pillow and told her he was going to kill her, according to court records.
She eventually got away from him and pushed him out the back door, the affidavit states.
Later, the teen said, she was walking near her apartment when Billy approached her. She said he pushed her against a wall and attempted to kiss her. She got away and went into her apartment, but he pushed open the front door as she tried to close it, according to court records.
She said she fell to the ground, and he, again, tried to touch her sexually. She said she shouted at him to stop, but he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her out the back door of the apartment, the affidavit states.
Officers said the girl told them her friend then approached and walked her back to her apartment. Shortly after, Billy again entered the apartment through a bedroom window. The teen’s friend and her neighbor came over to confront Billy and were able to get him to leave, court records state.
