A recorded sexual encounter sent to Snapchat for others to see is sending three area men to prison.
CANTON A recorded sexual encounter sent to Snapchat for others to see is sending three area men to prison.
The group learned their fate Monday but not before drawing the ire of Stark County Common Pleas Judge Taryn Heath.
Shortly after the sentencing hearing had gotten under way, Heath took umbrage with the attitude of one of the defendants standing before her.
"What are you shaking your head for?" the judge barked from the bench. "Are you serious?"
The men — 20-year-old Seth J. Redmond, 21-year-old Alex M. Sterling of Canton and 19-year-old Skylar M. Nelson of the Bolivar area — pleaded guilty last week to charges tied to the sexual assault of a woman at Redmond's home in Perry Township last September.
The group had been partying and had sex with a woman who was substantially impaired by alcohol and drugs, according to county prosecutors.
The 18-year-old victim was so under the influence of alcohol and marijuana that she doesn't remember the incident, said Hope Konovsky, assistant Stark County prosecutor.
The three men "were in the room while the others were engaging in the sexual battery and encouraging each other to do so," according to an account filed by the prosecution.
Nelson recorded the acts and posted a video on Snapchat, which was viewed by others.
Their plea deal with prosecutors called for a four-year prison term with a possibility of early release into a treatment and counseling center if they behave and follow the rules in prison.
An upset Heath let the men know she was only going through with the plea agreement to spare the victim from having to testify during a trial.
"She just didn't want to be revictimized by you people," the judge said, calling their acts disgusting and reprehensible.
As part of the deal, a sexual battery charge and a second complicity charge were amended to attempted abduction with a sexual motivation specification. Both are third-degree felonies but the attempted abduction charge avoids sex offender registration for life, an issue the defense pushed for.
Once released, all three will be Tier 2 sex offenders, meaning they must register their address with authorities every six months for 25 years.
Heath offered some last words before they were handcuffed and taken away by Stark County Sheriff's deputies.
"Each of you has a lot of growing up and soul-searching to do," she said.