Man assaults 90-year-old patient, then chokes child during sleepover, CA officials say
A man was convicted of multiple charges after he was accused of a “violent crime spree” that included performing lewd acts on a 90-year-old patient and attempting to kill a 6-year-old girl, California prosecutors say.
A jury found Joel James Gonzales, 28, guilty of multiple counts, including attempted murder, assault with the intent to commit rape and aggravated trespassing, the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office said in an Aug. 27 news release. He also pleaded guilty to one count of felony lewd acts on a dependent adult, prosecutors said.
‘Violent crime spree’
While Gonzales worked as a caretaker at an elderly care facility in Camarillo, he’s accused of assaulting two victims the evening of Oct. 15, 2020, prosecutors said.
During his shift, Gonzales cornered a patient in her room and attacked her, prosecutors said.
The woman fought back as Gonzales “pushed her down on the bed” and tried to take off her clothes, according to prosecutors.
Gonzalez eventually relented and left her room, prosecutors said.
He then went to the memory care portion of the facility, took a 90-year-old woman with dementia into a closet, and locked the door, prosecutors said.
He’s accused of performing “lewd acts on the victim before staff started knocking on the door,” according to prosecutors.
The following day, Gonzales broke into a Camarillo home through a doggy door, prosecutors said.
The homeowner told Gonzales to leave, but he refused and wandered about until a Ventura County deputy arrived and arrested him, according to prosecutors.
Later that evening, he was released from jail and family picked him up, prosecutors said.
They brought him to their home, where a 6-year-old girl was having her first sleepover with the family’s daughter, prosecutors said.
Early the next morning, “family members heard loud banging noises coming from the room where the two young girls were sleeping,” prosecutors said.
A teenager went to check on the girls and found “Gonzales violently beating and choking the six-year-old victim in her sleeping bag,” according to prosecutors.
The teenager charged at Gonzales, knocking him off the girl, prosecutors said.
The parents at the home held Gonzales down while others called 911, according to prosecutors.
Deputies arrived to find the girl, whose face was bloodied, going “in and out of consciousness,” prosecutors said.
“She survived the attack but suffered brain trauma,” according to prosecutors.
A hung jury
During Gonzales’ July trial, the jury was deadlocked on three additional charges, resulting in a mistrial for those counts, Joey Buttitta, a spokesperson for the district attorney’s office, told McClatchy News in an Aug. 29 email.
As Gonzales pleaded guilty to one of them, felony lewd acts on a dependent adult, the other two charges will be dismissed at sentencing and no additional trial will be needed, according to Buttitta.
By pleading guilty, Gonzales also “withdrew his plea of not guilty by reason of insanity,” prosecutors said.
“The defendant’s plea and convictions today enable each of the victims to receive the justice and closure they deserve,” Senior Deputy District Attorney Tom Steele said in the release.
Gonzales is expected to appear in court on Sept. 25, when “he is expected to receive 16 years 8 months in state prison,” prosecutors said.
Camarillo is about a 50-mile drive northwest from Los Angeles.
This story was originally published August 30, 2024 at 1:52 PM with the headline "Man assaults 90-year-old patient, then chokes child during sleepover, CA officials say."
