A 22-year-old Morrow, Georgia man has pleaded guilty in Marion County Court to a Class 2 felony charge of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.
The charge stems from an incident in June in Centralia where James Wooten reportedly confined and committed sexual acts against a woman for three hours in the place where he was staying. Two counts of unlawful restraint, aggravated battery with strangulation, and aggravated criminal sexual assault were all dropped as part of the open plea agreement.
Wooten is scheduled to be sentenced on January 9th after a presentence investigation is completed.
Centralia Police at the time said the victim began talking to Wooten after dropping off a friend at a nearby home. She later went into the home Wooten was staying. The woman attempted to flee out the back door of the residence, but Wooten reportedly chased her down and tackled her near a store on East Noleman where an employee yelled at Wooten to leave her alone. That’s when the police were contacted.
The woman was taken to SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital for treatment of her injuries.
