The victim of a brutal attack and sexual assault in Shelton sent a message to her assailant at his sentencing Thursday:
“You broke my body,” the victim wrote in a statement read in court. “You did not break my spirit or my resolve.”
Justin Bonner, 26, of Stratford, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for the attack, in which he kidnapped, raped and viciously beat a Cumberland Farms clerk in June 2010.
The victim, who has not been named, did not come to Bonner’s sentencing: She now lives in Colorado with her family.
But a family attorney, John August, spoke at Superior Court in Milford Thursday on their behalf.
Bonner’s actions “broke her body, stole her dignity and left permanent physical and emotional scars,” August said.
But she’s working to move on with her life, and to try to gain some normalcy despite post traumatic stress disorder, continued headaches and “ongoing fear,” August said.
Bonner dragged the woman out of the River Road Cumberland Farms shop in the early morning hours of June 1, 2010. He put her in the trunk of his car, and drove away with her.
The woman was able to open the trunk door several times during the ride. But each time she did, Bonner stopped the car, got out and started to beat the woman with items in the trunk — including a plastic bag with full soda cans in it.
Then he took her to the Sunnyside boat launch on the Housatonic River, and “viciously” raped the woman, according to States Attorney Kevin Lawlor.
“Basically left for dead, she was able to escape at the point,” Lawlor said Thursday in court.
The woman was beaten so badly she was unrecognizable. She suffered traumatic head injury and has still not fully recovered.
The attack was random. Bonner told police he was high on PCP and couldn’t remember what he did.
Lawlor said Bonner should serve the full 35-year sentence, which was determined as part of a plea agreement.
“He’s a vicious animal,” Lawlor said after the sentencing. “What he did to that woman was unspeakable.”
As part of the plea agreement, Bonner pleaded guilty to first-degree sexual assault and first-degree robbery. Two other charges — first-degree kidnapping and first-degree assault — were dismissed as part of the deal.
Judge Richard Arnold said the case was one of the worst he has seen in his career.
Arnold used four words to describe the crime:
“Vicious. Savage. Humiliating. Degrading.”
Arnold was particularly disturbed by the description in the pre-sentencing investigation report, which described Bonner’s repeated beatings while the woman was in the trunk.
“I can’t imagine the horror,” Arnold said.
Arnold also questioned support for Bonner that came in the form of one letter submitted to the court. Arnold would not say who wrote the letter, but said it was “misguided.”
The letter says that society failed Bonner, according to Arnold.
“The person who needs to take responsibility for Mr. Bonner’s actions is Mr. Bonner,” Arnold said.
The victim’s family, through their attorney August, said they were satisfied with the sentence.
“You will not be free for many years,” August read from their statement. “You will have quite some time to consider what you have done.”
Forensic Evidence
The victim’s family and Arnold both commended the Shelton Police Department, the States Attorneys office and the state crime lab for their work sealing the conviction.
Bonner was found quickly after the incident after Shelton police released convenience store footage to the media.
“This is one of the reasons we implore convenience stores and gas stations to have good video equipment,” Detective Ben Trabka said Thursday.
The police department was able to get DNA evidence from the victim and from Bonner’s car. And the state crime lab verified that the DNA matched.
“This case came together much better with the results of the forensics test,” Arnold said.
