Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, July 22, 1994 TAG: 9407220139
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURENCE HAMMACK
DATELINE: LENGTH: Short
Ricky L. Cobler received a six-month jail sentence for the misdemeanor charge as part of a plea agreement reached in Roanoke Circuit Court.
The victim, who knew Cobler, said he approached her outside a Memorial Avenue bar the night of Jan.5 and forced her into his car, according to Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Gerald Teaster.
Cobler then drove to his home, where the offense occurred.
Although the woman said she did not consent to sex, she did not resist Cobler's advances. Teaster said that was because she had been the victim of previous violence by Cobler.
"Basically it was psychological intimidation," he said. "She did not resist him because she was afraid of him."
Although prosecutors could have pursued the rape and abduction charges, the plea agreement was struck because of the "risks associated with litigation," attorneys on both sides said.
The woman, who attended Thursday's hearing, agreed to the arrangement because it spared her from having to testify, Teaster said.
Morgan Griffith, a Salem lawyer who represented Cobler, said his client "would have contested the evidence vigorously."
If the case had gone to trial, Cobler would have faced a maximum punishment of two life terms in prison.
by CNB