Man Found Guilty of Assaulting Girls in Pittsfield Park Last Year
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A man was found guilty of assault after providing alcohol to underage girls in a park last year.
Chase Wood, 21, was found guilty by a jury of his peers on Friday, Oct. 9, of multiple charges connected to an assault and battery of a minor, the Berkshire District Attorney's Office reported.
Wood was found guilty of three counts of indecent assault and battery, one count of assault and battery, one count of assault to rape, one count of indecent assault and battery under 14, and three counts of furnishing alcohol to a minor.
On Oct. 16, a judge sentenced him to 2 1/2 years in the Berkshire County House of Corrections, with an additional 2 1/2 years on and after the first sentence followed by three years of probation. The commonwealth requested a total sentence of seven to nine years in state prison.
Police said Wood connected with three juvenile girls at a Pittsfield park last summer, bringing alcohol and supplying it to them, and after consuming the alcohol, gave the three juveniles a ride on his e-bike and began attempting to assault them.
"Two girls were able to rebuff him but a third was unable to due to her position on the e-bike. He then took the third girl to a secluded area of the park in an attempt to further assault her. When she tried to resist him, he proceeded to violently drag her into the woods," the DA wrote.
"Ultimately, all three girls were able to escape."
Child Abuse Unit Chief Andrew Giorolo represented the state and Ian Benoit and Shairai Richards were the victim witness advocates on behalf of the Berkshire District Attorney's Office. Pittsfield Police was the lead law enforcement agency.
"I first and foremost commend our Chief of the Child Abuse Unit Andrew Giarolo on prosecuting this case. These cases are never easy, and he did an extraordinary job," DA Timothy Shugrue said.
"I am pleased by the outcome in this case. The trauma he inflicted on three young women will impact them for years to come. I commend them for their bravery as we moved through this case."
Tags: sexual assault,
