WORTHINGTON -- A Worthington man charged with criminal sexual conduct last fall pleaded guilty Tuesday to two counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, accepting a plea agreement that dismisses four other criminal sexual conduct charges.
Daniel Lee Valdez, 42, was charged in October 2007 after the Nobles County Sheriff's Department received a referral from Todd County asking for an investigation into a criminal sexual conduct report. The alleged victim is a 15-year-old girl, who said Valdez, a friend of her step-father, had been asking her for sexual favors for the past two months. During an interview, Valdez admitted he "may have touched her once or twice."
Both counts are second-degree criminal sexual conduct -- one in which Valdez was in a position of authority over the victim, the other in which he had a significant relationship with the victim.
The plea agreement calls for an executed prison sentence of 60 months for one count and 70 months for the other, which would run concurrently.
"That is subject to the probation office and a pre-sentence investigation (PSI)," said Nobles County Attorney Gordon Moore.
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The PSI will look into Valdez's background, which Moore said includes a "significant meth conviction" from California, which gives him criminal history points.
"Basically, he is getting the presumptive sentence," Moore stated.
Valdez remains in custody at the Nobles County Jail, where he has been since Oct. 25, 2007. His bond amount was lowered from $50,000 to $30,000 in late November, but Valdez was not able to raise the amount necessary to bail out of jail. At the time, Moore told Judge Timothy Connell he would consider agreeing to the bail reduction if Valdez would go on some type of house arrest.
Sentencing in the case has been scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Aug. 19 at the Prairie Justice Center.
