Mark Bowes, Richmond Times-Dispatch, Va.
A 52-year-old Richmond man could spend more than 10 years behind bars for his conviction Monday of having sex with a 14-year-old girl without telling her he was infected with the AIDS virus.
Under terms of a plea agreement, Andre Russell Harvin pleaded guilty to having carnal knowledge of a minor, a felony, and to a misdemeanor count of having sex with a person without disclosing he was infected with the human immunodeficiency virus.
Judge Frederick G. Rockwell III of Chesterfield County Circuit Court accepted Harvin’s pleas and set sentencing for March 19. Harvin faces up to 10 years in prison on the felony count and up to 12 months on the misdemeanor charge.
The latter was reduced from a felony to a misdemeanor because there was no evidence that Harvin was intentionally trying to infect the victim.
In the summary of evidence presented by Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney M. Duncan Minton Jr., the girl told police that she encountered Harvin as she was leaving a bathroom in her home and he then led her into a nearby bedroom, where they began to have intercourse. She eventually asked him to stop because she believed what they were doing was immoral.
However, Harvin told police that the girl was the aggressor. He admitted to having intercourse but Harvin said he stopped because he had HIV and didn’t want to infect her.
Harvin and the victim were acquaintances. The Richmond Times-Dispatch is withholding additional details about how Harvin knew the girl to protect the girl’s identity.
The encounter occurred May 10 and was reported to police six days later.
Minton said authorities are still uncertain whether the girl was infected or even tested for HIV. Authorities cannot compel the mother to have her daughter tested, and the mother has not advised whether testing was done and, if so, the outcome, Minton said.
The charges against Harvin were brought less than a year after a Richmond judge dismissed a murder count against Harvin at the request of city prosecutors, who concluded Harvin acted in self-defense when he fatally shot 18-year-old Jameal Smith on May 27, 2010.
The shooting occurred in a home that Smith’s mother shared with Harvin in the 5500 block of Euclid Avenue in the city’s Fulton area.
Authorities learned during their investigation that Smith had been demanding money from Harvin over several months so that Smith could buy drugs. On the day of the killing, Smith’s mother and Harvin refused to give Smith any more money, which angered Smith and prompted him to force his way into the house.
Armed with a knife, Smith kicked in the front door and rushed Harvin. Harvin then shot Smith with a handgun that Smith’s mother had given Harvin that evening, according to evidence.
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©2011 the Richmond Times-Dispatch (Richmond, Va.)
