Ohio Man with HIV Sentenced for Failing to Disclose to Sex Partners

COMMENTARY | Andre Davis, a former professional wrestler who could have received a prison sentence of more than 100 years incarceration, was sentenced to 32 years in prison in a Hamilton County, Ohio, court for having sexual relationships with over a dozen women and failing to inform those women that he is HIV positive. FOX News released information from the Associated Press, revealing that Davis also faces similar charges of felonious assault in Warren County, Ohio, which is just north of Cincinnati.

Ohio law requires that an individual who knows that he or she is HIV positive must disclose the information to any sexual partner. Ohio Revised Code 2903.11 provides that any person knowing that he or she is an HIV carrier and fails to make such disclosure can be prosecuted under the felonious assault statute, which is a second degree felony in Ohio. Not only can the person be prosecuted under felonious assault statutes, but if the person had sex with another during the commission of a rape, the person can be charged with both the rape and the felonious assault charges.

Knowing the risks and dangers that HIV and AIDS presents, it seems pretty easy to wonder how anyone could be so callous as to have sex with someone who is not aware of your HIV status. The court did not disclose whether any of the several women were infected, according to the AP, but it is only reasonable to assume that many of Davis’ victims may not even know for some time yet that they have contracted the HIV virus from Davis.

Are these Ohio laws really strict enough to deter individuals with HIV or full-blown AIDS who have sex without informing their partner(s)? Apparently not, because if these laws were tough enough, there would most likely be some indication of deterrence. But the case of the callous actions of Andre Davis is not the only recent similar Ohio incident.

In June 2011, An Ohio man in his 30s was charged with knowingly infecting a 15-year-old Dayton boy with HIV. The Dayton Daily News reported that Jerome Walker had met the boy on the internet and the two began having sexual contact.

Perhaps those individuals who know they are HIV-positive or infected with full-blown AIDS would be deterred if there were even stiffer penalties beyond those provided under Ohio’s felonious assault statutes. Perhaps if there was a new set of statutes or if failing to inform a sex partner of HIV or AIDS status was instead classified under attempted murder statutes, some individuals would not put the lifelong health and indeed, the very life of sex partners at risk.

Donna Hicks has a Bachelor of Science degree as well as an associate degree in criminal justice. She has worked at an Ohio prison and a residential halfway house program for parolees.


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