HIV-positive man in Minn. found guilty of assault for not using condom

An HIV-positive 30-year-old resident of Minnesota was convicted by a jury last Friday of attempted first degree assault for allegedly failing to use a condom during sex.

United Press International reports that while the jury believed that Daniel James Rick, 30, had disclosed his HIV-positive status to his partner, it was obligated to find him guilty of the attempted assault charge. The man’s attorney has said he will challenge the guilty verdict.

“Because he didn’t use any protection, it didn’t matter if he told or not,” [defense attorney Landon] Ascheman said. “Reading the statute exactly as it is, they were told they essentially had to convict him.”

The law has two parts. The first addresses the situation with the HIV-positive man, while the second addresses assaults against police and peace officers.

Subdivision 1.Great bodily harm. Whoever assaults another and inflicts great bodily harm may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 20 years or to payment of a fine of not more than $30,000, or both.

The strict interpretation of the statute could set a precedent for HIV-positive people, making them criminally negligent even if the HIV-positive partner has obtained consent to have unprotected sex, Fox 9 reports.

Rick has previously been convicted of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy in Sherburne County. According to court records, he was sentenced last May to two months in jail in connection with that case. The victim in that case did not contract HIV.