FORT WORTH -- A 42-year-old man who knew he was HIV-positive has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for infecting a woman with the virus during consensual sex, the Tarrant County district attorney's office reported Monday.
Jimmy Bernard Billingsley of Fort Worth pleaded guilty earlier to a charge of aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury.Billingsley chose to have state District Judge Robb Catalano assess his punishment, according to a news release. The sentence range was probation to 20 years in prison.Friday, Catalano assessed the 15-year prison term after reviewing a pre-sentence investigation report and hearing testimony from several people, including Billingsley.According to testimony, Billingsley had sex numerous times with a woman he met in 2009 while coaching her son's youth football team.In late 2010, the woman learned she was HIV-positive and immediately called police.Billingsley was the only man with whom she had had sex, and he had refused to use a condom, she told investigators.Billingsley testified that he has had numerous sexual partners since he learned he was HIV positive in 2008, but he didn't warn them."This defendant's intentional nondisclosure to numerous sex partners was egregious, dangerous, willful and malicious," prosecutor Joshua Ross said.-- Bill MillerHave more to add? News tip? Tell us
