NEVADA, Iowa – The Latest on the sentencing of a former Iowa State University student who sexually assaulted another student (all times local):
11:25 a.m.
A Texas woman who was sexually assaulted after a party at Iowa State University is telling her assailant that he changed her life forever.
Speaking in an Iowa courtroom, the 21-year-old woman told Patrick Whetstone that the 2014 assault "turned my life upside down" and shattered her college career.
She told Whetstone that "you touched my soul in a way that haunts me in my sleep." She spoke of having panic attacks and losing friends who didn't believe her.
The woman told one of Whetstone's attorneys that she's never been so "verbally disrespected by anybody in my entire life."
Whetstone pleaded guilty to assault with intent to commit sexual abuse. A judge sentenced him to 2 years of probation followed by 10 years of sex offender monitoring.
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10:45 a.m.
A former Iowa State University student will avoid prison but be required to register as a sex offender for assaulting an unconscious female student after a party.
Patrick Whetstone received his sentence Thursday after pleading guilty to assault with intent to commit sexual abuse.
Under a plea agreement accepted by Judge James McGlynn, the 21-year-old Whetstone will be on probation for two years, followed by 10 years of monitoring as a sex offender.
That means he will be listed on the state registry and will have to report his address and social media usernames to authorities.
The victim told police she became ill from drinking on March 30, 2014, after an on-campus party and fell asleep. She says she woke up to find Whetstone assaulting her.
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1 a.m.
A former Iowa State University student is expected to be sentenced Thursday for sexually assaulting an unconscious female student after an on-campus party.
A plea agreement calls for 21-year-old Patrick Whetstone to avoid prison but be required to register as a sex offender for 10 years.
Under the agreement, Whetstone pleaded guilty to assault with intent to commit sexual abuse, an aggravated misdemeanor. Prosecutors dismissed three felony sexual abuse charges.
A now-21-year-old woman from Texas told police she had become ill from drinking alcohol at the party on March 30, 2014, and fell asleep on a couch. She says she woke up to find Whetstone assaulting her.
The woman has filed a lawsuit accusing the university of botching its handling of the case. Her complaint has prompted a federal investigation.
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