Jennifer Murphy was sentenced Friday to two years in a federal prison after being found guilty of sexual assault for not telling her sexual partners she's HIV-positive.
Murphy was convicted for aggravated sexual assault in August after she had sex with a man in the back of his van but didn’t tell him she was HIV positive.
Murphy was sentenced to more than three years in prison but the judge allowed the 15 months that Murphy has already spent in jail while waiting for her trial to be taken off her sentence.
“It’s a sentence we didn’t initially propose but it’s a sentence she (Murphy) decided in the last couple of days to agree too,” said defence attorney Angela McLeod
Murphy was arrested two years ago after three men complained she didn’t let them know she was HIV positive. Two of the cases were discarded. After serving two years in prison, Murphy will be on probation for three years. Murphy will also be required to give a DNA sample and will be registered on the national sex offender registry for life.
Before issuing the sentence, Justice Gregory Mulligan asked Murphy if she had anything to say. Murphy stood up in the prisoner’s box and thanked the crown for considering her desire to move forward from the situation and also thanked the judge for hearing all the evidence and said she hoped he would make a fair decision.
In 2005, Murphy was convicted of the same charge and sentenced to 12 months house arrest after having unprotected sex with a soldier from CFB Borden and not telling him she was HIV positive.
The defence says Murphy wants to carry out her sentence at a federal prison in the Maritimes where she is originally from and where she can also participate in counselling that is not offered at prisons in Ontario.
