BANGOR – A Bangor man’s lack of remorse and his behavior during his rape trial earlier this month helped earn him an eight-year prison sentence, a Superior Court judge said Tuesday.
Justice Michaela Murphy suspended all but four years of the sentence. She also sentenced John Auclair, 45, to three years of probation with numerous conditions.
Auclair was found guilty of gross sexual assault last month by a Penobscot County jury and was found not guilty of the more serious charge of rape at the end of a two-day jury trial. The jury concluded that he had sex with the 41-year-old victim when she was incapacitated and unable to resist but that he had not used force or coercion.
He faced up to 10 years in prison. Auclair had several previous misdemeanor convictions but none for sex crimes.
“The defendant has shown a very obvious lack of remorse,” Murphy said in imposing the sentence. “I observed his demeanor during the trial. His facial expressions, his mutterings under his breath, and how he stared at the victim during her testimony all speak volumes about the fact that he has no remorse for his conduct.
“He also knew just how intoxicated [the victim] was,” she continued. “The court finds that an aggravating factor. It’s likely that he targeted her because of her state of intoxication.”
Murphy also said that the impact of Auclair’s crime on the victim was “significant.”
The victim attended the sentencing hearing but did not address the court. She submitted a written victim impact statement that the judge said she had read.
An emotional Auclair continued to maintain his innocence during the sentencing as he did during his trial. He said that he planned to appeal his conviction and sentence to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.
“I was accused of a crime I didn’t commit,” he told the judge.
Auclair testified at his trial that he had sex with the victim but that it was consensual.
Peter Brountas, owner of The Tavern in Bangor, spoke on the defendant’s behalf. Auclair previously worked as a doorman at the Main Street bar. He urged the judge to pay close attention to the jury’s verdict.
“Our family knows that John did not do this,” he said. “It seems to me that with the jury splitting the verdict, a lenient sentence would be appropriate and serve justice as well.”
Auclair was convicted of sexually assaulting a female acquaintance in the early morning hours of Oct. 14 after he, the victim and his girlfriend had been out drinking in Bangor. His girlfriend, Sherry DePhilippo, 38, of Glenburn, who would have corroborated his version of events, according to defense attorney Kirk Bloomer, was killed in a car accident in April.
Michael Roberts, deputy district attorney for Penobscot County, recommended that Murphy sentence Auclair to between seven and eight years in prison. He also asked her not to suspend any of it because of Auclair’s lack of remorse and his previous conviction for a probation violation.
Bloomer urged the judge to sentence his client to three years with all but nine months suspended and two years of probation.
Conditions of Auclair’s probation include sex offender counseling, no contact with the victim or her family and no use of alcohol or drugs. Auclair will be required to register as a sex offender after his release.
jharrison@bangordailynews.net
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