Earlysville man gets 4 years for sexual assaults

An Earlysville man convicted of sexually assaulting two acquaintances will spend four years in prison.
Circuit Judge Paul M. Peatross Jr. sentenced Andrew Reid Bechtle on Wednesday to an active sentence of four years in prison, five years of supervised probation and 15 years of good behavior. Bechtle also will have to register as a sex offender.
Bechtle, 20, pleaded guilty Wednesday to aggravated sexual battery and carnal knowledge as part of a plea agreement that Peatross accepted in Albemarle County Circuit Court.

Bechtle’s case has revealed to defense attorney Rhonda Quagliana the complexities of being a modern teenager. Quagliana said in court that she would not be the only one perplexed by how some young people view sexual acts.
“If it is difficult for a jury to sort out issues of consent, certainly it is difficult for these young people,” she said.
The battery charge references an incident in June at Bechtle’s father’s home. In court Wednesday, Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Darby G. Lowe said Bechtle picked up the then-17-year-old victim, with whom he was supposed to have dinner, but they went to Bechtle’s father’s house instead. The prosecutor said the victim text messaged a friend while Bechtle played video games prior to the assault.

The carnal knowledge charge refers to an incident in December 2007, which Lowe said was reported after the June assault came to light. The second victim, then 18, and
Bechtle returned to his father’s house from an evening out and went into a room, where the victim told Bechtle she couldn’t have sex with him because she had a boyfriend. The conflict escalated but things then calmed down, only for Bechtle to rip off the victim’s dress and sexually assault her, Lowe said.
In her client’s defense, Quagliana said that she could have produced a witness at trial who had listened to a conversation between Bechtle and one of the victims, who reportedly said she was looking forward to having sex with Bechtle.
However, Lowe said that the two victims were not the only ones to tell authorities that Bechtle assaulted them.
“Other girls came forward with cases that have similar nuances,” Lowe said. “… There is a pattern here of walking a fine line with these girls.”

Under the plea agreement, Bechtle was sentenced to 20 years in prison on the battery charge, with all but three years suspended. Bechtle received five years on the carnal knowledge charge, with all but one year suspended. Part of the agreement includes a provision that the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office not prosecute any other charges relating to the existing allegations.
Lowe said that the victims and their families had significant input into the plea agreement, which will require Bechtle to be monitored on GPS and subject to polygraph tests while on probation. Both Lowe and Quagliana also said in court that they agreed with the terms of the plea agreement.
“It is designed to really reach the problem and deal with it,” Quagliana said.