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Man pleads guilty to sexual assault

Assailant faces probation or prison time in American Legion incident
Gallegos

A Durango man pleaded guilty today to kidnapping and attempted sexual assault stemming from an incident that occurred last year at the American Legion in Durango.

Jeffrey Gallegos, 46, faces prison time for the kidnapping, but will receive probation for attempted sexual assault.

The plea bargain was accepted by 6th Judicial District Judge William Herringer. He set sentencing for 10 a.m. Dec. 10.

Gallegos was represented by public defender John Moran. Assistant District Attorney Christian Champagne represented the state.

Gallegos and another man met a 22-year-old woman at a downtown bar about 1 a.m. April 4, 2013. They took the woman, who aspired to be a bartender, to the American Legion Hall bar to see if she could mix drinks.

There, they plied her with liquor to the point of helplessness. Gallegos later had oral sex with the woman, and his companion was caught on a security camera trying to put tape over the lens.

Gallegos faces two to six years in prison for felony kidnapping, three years of parole and a fine of $2,000 to $500,000. Prison time could range from one year to 12 years, according to mitigating or aggravating circumstances.

But he also could be sentenced to probation.

Attempted sexual assault, a Class 5 felony, carries a sentence of one to three years in prison. But Gallegos will receive probation on that charge, according to the plea bargain.

The probation period for attempted sexual assault will follow whatever sentence Gallegos receives for kidnapping.

Herringer, Champagne and Moran discussed a possible exception to a requirement of probation that Gallegos have no contact with women younger than 18. He has a 13-year-old daughter.

Herringer said he wouldn’t stand in the way if all parties agree. But he won’t let Gallegos withdraw his guilty pleas for lack of unanimity, Herringer said.

The man with Gallegos the night of the incident, Joseph Robert Toledo, was charged as an accomplice. He was sentenced to 18 months probation by Herringer on Aug. 22.

daler@duragoherald.com



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