French national set free after taking Alford plea

The Hot Springs County District Court jury trial of French national Gilbert Vieira for first degree sexual assault concluded Friday, Sept. 25 after five days. Vieira was held in the Hot Spring County Detention Center since March, 2015 after being arrested following an incident at a local hotel.

Jury selection started Monday, Sept. 21 with the trial expected to last for two weeks. Half way through the trial, Vieira took an Alford plea. An Alford plea is when the defendant does not admit guilt but admits the prosecution has enough evidence to prove he may be guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Before Judge Robert Skar sentenced Vieira, the victim had a chance to influence the court’s decision towards the plea. The victim stated, “All she asks for is justice and he (Vieira) deserves at least three years in prison.”

Vieira received a split sentence, the time he served in county jail counted towards time served and then he will be placed on 3 years probation. If Vieira returns home to France he would be placed on 3 years unsupervised probation; if he were to stay in the U.S., he would have to register as a sex offender with the Wyoming Sex Offender Registry and be on 3 years of supervised probation.

Vieira was released after sentencing on Friday, Sept. 25 and promptly made arrangements to go back to France.