South Dakota: New Plea Given in HIV Case

One of two HIV-positive Aberdeen, S.D., men accused of engaging in sex without telling their partners changed his plea Monday. Before Brown County Circuit Court Judge Eugene Dobberpuhl, William K. Jenigen entered an Alford plea, under which he maintains his innocence but concedes there is evidence to make his conviction by a jury or judge likely. When Jenigen was arrested last May, his then roommate and partner Jay L. Woods was also charged with potentially exposing others to HIV. Jenigen entered his plea in exchange for the state dropping five other counts alleging he knowingly exposed others to HIV through sexual activity. Woods faces three such counts. The judge said the pre-sentencing investigation requested by Jenigen's attorney will take at least three weeks to complete. Woods' trial is set for March 11-17. Both men are free on $25,000 personal recognizance bonds. In July, Nikko Briteramos, 19, of Chicago, became the first person convicted under a 2000 South Dakota law making it a crime to intentionally expose another to HIV. He was given a suspended five-year sentence but violated several of its conditions and is now serving a four-year prison sentence.

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