MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- A North Carolina man could avoid additional jail time as part of a plea agreement he signed to resolve allegations of sexual abuse involving a 9-year-old boy and a 13-year-old girl in January 2010, according to Berkeley County Circuit Court records.
James E.B. Michael, 32, has agreed to enter a guilty plea to one felony count of first-degree sexual abuse and one misdemeanor count of third-degree sexual abuse, according to the plea agreement filed in Berkeley County Circuit Clerk Virginia M. Sine's office.
If 23rd Judicial Circuit Judge Gray Silver III agrees to the agreement, a five- to 25-year prison sentence and a 90-day maximum jail sentence would be suspended, and Michael would be placed on five years of probation, according to court records.
A plea and sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 18.
Two counts of first-degree sexual abuse contained in a four-count indictment returned by a grand jury in May also would be dismissed, but Michael would have to register as a sex offender for life, according to court records.
