Jonathan Allen Gamond pled no contest to four counts of sexual assault against a 14-year-old girl and was sentenced to 30 years in state prison this week. Gamond, a martial arts instructor, picked up the girl in Lakewood, drove her to Seal Beach where he assaulted her, and then released her in Cerritos. The prosecution says that he may have impersonated a cop when he stopped the girl and her friend in order to gain their trust. His defense attorney denies that Gamond ever impersonated a cop and claims that he was very remorseful for the assault and decided to plead no contest to avoid putting the girl through any more pain by having to testify at trial. Gamond is only 32 years old and now faces the majority of the rest of his life in prison.
A plea of no contest means that the defendant doesn’t refute the charges, but also does not admit his guilt. He likely pled no contest because he was getting a plea bargain deal and knew that if he went to trial, a jury would likely not give him such a short sentence.
No matter if you are in Los Angeles County, Orange County or Riverside County, if you have been charged with sexual assault, you need a qualified and experienced attorney to help you. Sexual assault is a serious charge that comes with major prison time so you need the best possible defense attorney you can get.
If you want to know more about rape or sexual assault or any other legal matter, call California criminal defense attorney William Weinberg @ 949.474.8008 in his Irvine office.