Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, April 25, 1995 TAG: 9504250110
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: KIMBERLY N. MARTIN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Lee, 30, pleaded guilty in January to his involvement in the Aug. 19 incident, when he attempted to molest a 13-year-old and a 14-year-old.
The teen-agers had agreed to perform sexual acts with Lee in exchange for $20. But what the boys had in mind was robbing Lee, Salem Commonwealth's Attorney Fred King said.
Once at Lee's home, however, the boys spotted a gun and tried to escape. Lee then attempted to molest them, King said.
Lee, who has been convicted twice of possession of marijuana, said his substance abuse was a "large part" of his involvement in the incident.
He said he began drinking heavily at age 16 and began using marijuana even earlier.
"I feel like I can't stop on my own," Lee said at his sentencing hearing. "I'd go with whatever anyone recommends."
What King recommended was five years for each of Lee's two counts of taking indecent liberties with children, with three years on each count suspended. The four remaining years, King said, would be served in a drug and alcohol treatment program, in lieu of jail.
"He is a nonaggressive person. He is not likely to go seeking boys out," Dr. Isaac VanPatten said. "His danger is entirely contingent on his ability to maintain sobriety."
Both John Alexander, Lee's attorney, and Judge Roy B. Willett appeared to agree.
Willett revoked Lee's bond and sentenced him to jail, pending an evaluation by the city's drug treatment programs. Willett said that after hearing their evaluation he would determine the length of Lee's sentence and whether he could serve his time in a rehabilitation program.
"You've got to be committed to finish [a] program," Willett said. "Your sexual orientation is not this court's concern. Crime is this court's concern. ... Whether its girls or boys, sex with juveniles is unlawful."
Memo: ***CORRECTION***