A Durango man was sentenced to 60 days in jail and three years’ supervised probation for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl.
Joshua Bronson Fry, 35, pleaded guilty in June to sexual assault on a child with at least a 10-year age difference, a misdemeanor. Under a plea agreement, he received an additional 22-month suspended jail sentence on Friday from San Juan County Judge Anthony Edwards.
Initial felony charges were dropped, including sexual exploitation of a child.
Court records show that Fry, a former bartender at the now-closed 6512 Restaurant and Lounge at 152 E. College Drive, had sex with a female co-worker in fall 2015. Fry was also known to abuse cocaine.
The victim told Durango Police she went to Fry’s apartment under the impression that there would be a party, but Fry was alone. Fry made sexual advances, which escalated into sex, the victim said.
The victim said she went to Fry’s apartment about two weeks after the initial incident, but the two did not have sex.
Court documents show text messages exchanged between Fry and the victim, in which Fry makes sexually suggestive remarks, asks for photos and invites the victim to meet up.
The victim’s parents said their daughter initially confided in a staff member at her high school, who encouraged her to tell her parents and police.
“When we don’t prosecute, we send the message that rape is OK,” the high school staff member said, referencing the news that former Stanford University swimmer Brock Turner was released from jail after serving half of a six-month sentence for raping an unconscious woman.
The Durango victim’s parents told the court they’ve watched their once-outgoing daughter become withdrawn and prone to panic attacks with a decreasing level of functionality socially and academically.
In a prepared statement, the victim described the assault’s impact on her life.
“Not only have my relationships grown more and more distant, I now feel overwhelmingly uncomfortable around older men,” she wrote. “This man has single-handedly destroyed my self-esteem.”
“I’m sorry to (the victim) and her parents; this is the worst decision I ever made in my life,” Fry said. “I feel nothing but regret. I’m very sorry.”
The defendant’s father is local attorney Joel Fry, for whom both the prosecutor, Deputy District Attorney for the 12th District Robert Willett, and defense lawyer, Richard Jaye, expressed respect. Willett and the judge were assigned to the court case because of potential conflicts of interest with 6th Judicial District judges and prosecutors.
Joel Fry, who said he also has two daughters, attended Friday’s sentencing and expressed shame on behalf of his son.
“His conduct and the way he treated (the victim) is inexcusable,” he said. “I’m ashamed of his conduct. This has, in a strange way, brought me much closer to him. I’ve felt he’s had opportunities he’s not exercising. He’s got enough credit hours to have a degree, but never finished. Instead, he’s spent a lot of time with part-time jobs and too many drugs. This absolutely crossed the line. But he does not have a deviant tendency.”
The judge required Fry to register as a sex offender for the duration of his probation and for 10 years after. He also is required to undergo sex offender evaluation and treatment, abstain from drugs and alcohol, for which he will be monitored, and pay a $3,000 fine.
“It’s difficult on many levels to make a decision on this matter. A trial allows more information to come out, but we don’t have that, we have a plea,” Edwards said.
“I speculate, based on what I’ve read, that you’ve probably had a substance abuse issue for a while. I think it’s important you address that issue,” Edwards told Fry. “What I don’t find is that you’re a violent predator. There is no indication based on professionals that you’re a sexual predator, but I do believe you need all the help you can get at this point.”
jpace@durangoherald.com
