A 15-year-old from Virginia was placed on the state's sex offender registry for the rest of his life after sexually assaulting a girl in a Loudoun County high school bathroom in May and then inappropriately touching a second girl in October at a different school after transferring.
Loudoun County Juvenile Court Chief Judge Pamela L. Brooks told the teenager in a sentencing hearing on Wednesday that she was forced to place him on the registry after being very disturbed by his presentence psychological evaluations.
Brooks said she had never before placed a youth on the state's sex offender registry.
She added that his background “contributed to where you are" and did not disclose what was in his evaluations.
“What I read in those reports scared me,” Brooks said. “It scared me for your family. It scared me for society.”
The teen will not face any time at a juvenile detention center, and will instead be sent to a residential treatment facility and stay on probation until he turns 18-years-old.
Loudoun schools issued a policy following the first assault to allow transgender students to use the bathroom that matches their gender identity. Parents of the first victim described the defendant as "gender fluid" and was reportedly wearing a skirt at the time of the offense.
The assaults resulted in backlash and played a major role in the Virginia governor's race. Parents protested why the 15-year-old was allowed to attend a second high school while facing charges from the first case.
This caused Loudoun school officials to issue an apology for how the incidents were handled and promised to change disciplinary procedures.
One of the victims and family members testified in court on Wednesday, and advocated for the defendant to be sent to a residential treatment facility instead of a detention center.
"I could say you belong in a cell, but I know someone hurt you," the victim in the first case testified. She added later, "Even after what you did to me, I’m still here and I’m a better person than I was eight months ago."
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