A judge in Bangor on Monday sentenced a man to five consecutive weekends in Penobscot County Jail for assault so that he could remain eligible for unemployment compensation.

Kevin Devault, 32, pleaded guilty a week ago to the charge, which stemmed from a woman’s contention that he had touched her offensively after entering her unlocked apartment in Orono one evening last December.

A companion burglary charge was dismissed when Devault pleaded to the Class D assault charge.

Justice Margaret Kravchuk sentenced him to the maximum 364 days in jail, then suspended all but 10 days, which she ordered him to serve on consecutive weekends beginning Saturday, Aug. 3.

Outside the courtroom later, Kravchuk explained that type of penalty was not unusual, but was “underutilized.”

Deputy District Attorney Michael Roberts said the woman had dressed for bed when Devault arrived. He expressed interest in her and “grabbed her in the breast area” before she “basically forced him out of her apartment,” said Roberts. The woman, he said, wanted Devault to be incarcerated for a period of time.

Devault’s lawyer, Lawrence Lunn, said his client had lost his job because of the charges against him and was receiving unemployment benfits. Also, said Lunn, Devault had given up his apartment in Bangor and was moving around, staying with friends and, occasionally, his former wife and their children, to have money to pay child support.

Lunn, pointing out that Devault had no prior criminal record, called the incident “an aberration.” He said his client was experiencing depression over it, and had sought counseling from Capt. Frank Kirk of the Salvation Army.

Kirk told the judge that Devault had “expressed a great deal of guilt feelings about what he had done” and didn’t want to subject the woman to a trial.

Kravchuk imposed the weekend sentence with Devault’s agreement, saying it was important for him to maintain his unemployment eligibility and to continue volunteer work at the Salvation Army. Stretching the sentence out, she added, also might impress upon Devault the seriousness of the offense.

She also ordered Devault to a year on probation, beginning immediately, during which he is to reimburse the Sheriff’s Department $10 a day for his incarceration, reimburse the Probation and Parole Office $10 a month, have no contact with the victim, continue to receive counseling, perform 500 hours of community service, support his family, and actively seek employment.