AUGUSTA — The victim of a sexual assault by an Augusta man who pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 21 days in jail Wednesday said his punishment isn’t enough and what he did to her still gives her nightmares.

Timothy Boothby, 51, who was accused of sexually assaulting the woman while she was too intoxicated to consent, was sentenced to 21 days in jail on a charge of unlawful sexual touching and also pleaded guilty to the more serious charge of gross sexual assault. But if he complies with the terms of a deferred disposition agreement, the gross sexual assault charge, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, could be dismissed in 18 months.

Conditions of the agreement include that Boothby undergo sex offender counseling, continue substance abuse treatment and have no contact with the victim.

The victim in the case testified, sometimes through tears, that the incident in Albion had a tremendous impact on her life and since it took place she tried to commit suicide and has been hospitalized twice, and she still has nightmares. She said she was opposed to the plea deal made with Boothby and she wanted him to get more prison time.

Superior Court Justice Robert Mullen expressed sympathy for the woman, whom the Kennebec Journal is not identifying because she is a victim of an alleged sexual assault. Mullen said that since the woman had no memory of critical elements of the night of the incident, it would have been more difficult for the state to prevail at trial. He also said the plea deal spares the victim of having to testify at a trial.

“I’ll accept the plea agreement,” Mullen said. “I’m not particularly happy about it, but it spares you the further trauma of a trial, which I think would not be a pleasant experience for anybody. Plus, Mr. Boothby is still having a conviction here, that still involves sexual misconduct, and the felony matter may stick if everything he is saying here is not factual. He’s receiving a break in part because of the evidentiary issues, in part because he has no record, and in part because he’s taking steps to ensure he’s no longer in that position again. I hope you don’t let this bad, bad, bad night define you and I hope this is giving you some type of closure and you can move on with your life, ma’am.”

Boothby said drinking was involved in the incident and he has been clean and sober since it took place, in September 2018. He said he is in Alcoholics Anonymous and also takes other attendees to and from AA meetings.

“I just want to move on with my life, and keep going in this AA program,” he said Wednesday at the Capital Judicial Center. “I apologize to the victim. It was a bad night. Drinking was involved. And I’m just taking responsibility.”

Prosecutor Frayla Tarpinian, deputy district attorney, said she’d had a lot of conversations with the victim and she understood that the victim felt Boothby’s sentence minimizes the severity of the offense and what he did had a severe impact on her life and mental health.

An affidavit filed by Detective Brittany Johnson of the Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office said an investigation into an alleged sexual assault began with a report Sept. 22, 2018, of a woman acting suspiciously at the Albion Country Store at 4:10 a.m.

The woman, who the affidavit said appeared confused and intoxicated, agreed to be taken to a hospital where she recalled meeting a man at a bar in Waterville. She said she didn’t remember leaving the bar but recalled being on the ground and trying to stand up and falling down again. She expressed concern her drink might have been spiked. She said she thought someone might have had sex with her, based on her state of clothes and some bruises.

Police later determined that Boothby was the man the victim had met at the Waterville bar. They interviewed him and he said he offered her a ride and initially denied, to police, having had sexual contact with her, but later said she had consented.

When police asked him whether she was in the right mindset to consent to sex, after he said she had fallen down and needed his help to get back into the vehicle, he said no.

 

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