Office of the District Attorney

P. David Soares
6 Lodge Street
Albany, New York 12207
(518) 487-5460
(518) 487-5093 FAX

Two Plead Guilty in SUNY Rape Case

ALBANY , NY –  District Attorney P. David Soares announced that LORENZO ASHBORNE, 19, of Smyrna, GA and JULIUS HARRIS, 19, of Riviera Beach, FL pled guilty to Rape in the Third Degree in front of the Honorable Thomas Breslin. In accordance with the plea bargain, they face six months in jail and ten years of probation as a sex offender.

On or about October 15th, 2006 in the early morning hours, at room 103-1 Onondaga Hall, SUNY Albany, ASHBORNE and HARRIS did engage in sexual intercourse with a female student when they did not have consent and when the victim clearly expressed that she did not consent to engage in such act.

DA Soares thanked the University at Albany Police Department and Administration for their diligent work and continued cooperation during this investigation. “I hope this sends a compelling message to college students and anyone who finds themselves in a similar situation that ‘No means No’ and without consent, there are serious consequences,” commented DA Soares. “This is a difficult case and these pleas were offered to these defendants with significant input from the victim and her family. Due to the choices made by these defendants, they are now convicted felons and sex offenders, and in addition to spending time in jail, they will be closely monitored for a significant portion of their adult lives.”

HARRIS surrendered himself to authorities immediately following the plea and ASHBORNE surrendered himself later this afternoon.

Sentencing for both HARRIS and ASHBORNE is scheduled for August 8, 2007.

The case against the third defendant, CHARLES GUADAGNO remains pending.

Chief ADA Mark Harris handled the prosecution of this case.

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