BENTONVILLE — Circuit Judge Robin Green told a teen born with HIV that life may have dealt him a bad hand but it did not give him the right to expose others to the disease.
Christopher Gray, 18, pleaded guilty Monday to five counts of exposing another person to human immunodeficiency virus, a class A felony. His plea was the result of an agreement his attorney Brad Wallace reached with Deputy Prosecutor Stephanie McLemore.
Gray was arrested in April after police learned of the allegations involving one girl. Gray told Bentonville Police Detective Mark Jordan that he is HIV positive and that he didn’t wear a condom while having sex with the girl, according to court documents.
Gray was arrested again a few months later after three more girls came forward claiming to have had sex with Gray without knowing his HIV status. He was arrested last month by Siloam Springs police on a charge relating to a fifth victim.
None of his victims have tested positive for HIV, officials have said.
McLemore told Green that the victims and police were notified of the plea and did not object. Most of the victims have moved on, McLemore said.
She said she also offered the plea because Gray agreed to waive a hearing to determine whether he would be tried as an adult or juvenile.
The judge accepted the plea agreement and Gray’s guilty plea.
Green said Gray is still a young man and she hopes he can serve his time and live a law-abiding life.
The judge followed the agreement’s sentencing recommendation and ordered Gray to serve 15 years in prison. He must serve at least three years before he is eligible for parole. After his release from prison, Gray must abide for 10 years to a suspended sentence agreement.
Gray was ordered to complete the prison’s sex offender treatment program and he will be required to register as sex offender.
He must pay $2,120 in court associated costs and will receive 263 days of credit for time spent in the Benton County Jail awaiting trial.
Gray was ordered not to have any contact with the victims.