Jordan Evans
PARIS — Bail was set at $5,000 cash Friday during the initial appearance of a transient man charged with two counts of felony sexual assault.
Jordan Evans, 45, was arrested Wednesday night on two counts of Class A gross sexual assault, two counts of Class B unlawful sexual contact, two counts of Class C sexual misconduct with a minor, and a single count of violating a protection from abuse order.
The charges stem from the sexual abuse of two young boys last summer in Norway, according to Norway Detective Gary Hill.
Class A crimes are punishable by up to 30 years in prison and fines of up to $50,000; Class B crimes, up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $20,000; and Class C crimes, up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Following his arrest in San Diego, California, on Wednesday, he was extradited to South Paris, where he had been indicted by a grand jury on the seven charges.
Bail conditions include no contact with the victim or the victim’s family, and being subject to random searches of electronic devices.
Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Winter recommended during Evans’ initial appearance, held via videoconference at Rumford District Court, that Judge Nancy Carlson set the bail at $10,000 because of the “very serious nature of the charges.”
“Mr. Evans was going to be served with a protection from abuse order, and that’s what prompted him to leave the state for California,” Winter said. “He was a transient in California when he was arrested, and he was a transient in Maine, so he has no established address.”
Jeffrey Wilson, the attorney representing Evans, said Evans was pleading not guilty on all counts. While there was no objection to the random search of electronic devices, Wilson asked that bail be set lower than $10,000.
“He doesn’t have a dollar to his name, so $10,000 isn’t going to do anything other than hold him until there’s a resolution to the case,” Wilson told Carlson. “There’s no difference between setting bail at $1,000 or $10,000.”
He recommended that bail be set low so “there’s a small chance that he can make bail if he’s able to find the money to do so.”
Carlson said that the bail would be set at $5,000, with all of the conditions set forth by the state.
A conference on his case was scheduled for May 26 at Oxford County Superior Court.
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