Unamused Cat
March 11th, 2008, 11:12 PM
Novato teen charged as an adult in molest case.
A Novato teenager accused of raping a 3-year-old girl has been charged as an adult as new details emerge about the case.
Maix Gonzalez, 16, was charged with rape with a foreign object, lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14, forcible lewd acts with a child and other related counts, according to court documents.
At the urging of county prosecutors, a Marin Superior Court judge raised Gonzalez's bail from $100,000 to $1 million.
The investigation began Monday evening, when police were called to Novato Community Hospital on a report of a 3-year-old Novato girl being treated for sexual assault injuries. The girl's mother identified the suspect as Gonzalez, who rents a room at her house.
At 5 p.m. Monday, when the mother thought the girl was watching television in the living room, she heard her yelling in Gonzalez's bedroom, according to an affidavit by Novato police Detective Jennifer Welch.
The mother retrieved the girl, told Gonzalez she didn't want the child in his bedroom, and took the girl back to the living room to watch TV. But after leaving the room to make a phone call, she returned to discover the girl was gone again.
Hearing more sounds from Gonzalez's bedroom, she knocked on his locked door and demanded to know what was happening.
"Wait until I finish," Gonzalez said, according to the affidavit.
The mother banged on the door until she was let inside. She told police that Gonzalez admitted to watching a pornographic movie with the girl three weeks earlier, and said the girl wanted him to touch her "like in the movie they watched," the affidavit said.
The mother took the girl to the hospital, where the staff found signs of a sexual assault.
In a subsequent interview with police, Gonzalez said the girl often came into his room seeking sexual contact, and he touched her to appease her, Welch wrote.
Gonzalez could face a sentence of 15 years to life if convicted of the adult charges, said District Attorney Ed Berberian.
"I think the charges speak for themselves," he said. "Obviously it's a serious sexual assault case involving a 3-year-old."
Gonzalez is in custody at Juvenile Hall. He is scheduled to enter a plea on March 7.
His lawyer, Deputy Public Defender Eva Bennett, did not respond to requests for comment.
http://www.marinij.com/novato/ci_8342244
A Novato teenager accused of raping a 3-year-old girl has been charged as an adult as new details emerge about the case.
Maix Gonzalez, 16, was charged with rape with a foreign object, lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14, forcible lewd acts with a child and other related counts, according to court documents.
At the urging of county prosecutors, a Marin Superior Court judge raised Gonzalez's bail from $100,000 to $1 million.
The investigation began Monday evening, when police were called to Novato Community Hospital on a report of a 3-year-old Novato girl being treated for sexual assault injuries. The girl's mother identified the suspect as Gonzalez, who rents a room at her house.
At 5 p.m. Monday, when the mother thought the girl was watching television in the living room, she heard her yelling in Gonzalez's bedroom, according to an affidavit by Novato police Detective Jennifer Welch.
The mother retrieved the girl, told Gonzalez she didn't want the child in his bedroom, and took the girl back to the living room to watch TV. But after leaving the room to make a phone call, she returned to discover the girl was gone again.
Hearing more sounds from Gonzalez's bedroom, she knocked on his locked door and demanded to know what was happening.
"Wait until I finish," Gonzalez said, according to the affidavit.
The mother banged on the door until she was let inside. She told police that Gonzalez admitted to watching a pornographic movie with the girl three weeks earlier, and said the girl wanted him to touch her "like in the movie they watched," the affidavit said.
The mother took the girl to the hospital, where the staff found signs of a sexual assault.
In a subsequent interview with police, Gonzalez said the girl often came into his room seeking sexual contact, and he touched her to appease her, Welch wrote.
Gonzalez could face a sentence of 15 years to life if convicted of the adult charges, said District Attorney Ed Berberian.
"I think the charges speak for themselves," he said. "Obviously it's a serious sexual assault case involving a 3-year-old."
Gonzalez is in custody at Juvenile Hall. He is scheduled to enter a plea on March 7.
His lawyer, Deputy Public Defender Eva Bennett, did not respond to requests for comment.
http://www.marinij.com/novato/ci_8342244