Man who attacked MP sentenced to prison

HARTFORD, CT – The man who attacked a state legislator after a church service last June was sentenced to five years in prison in Hartford Superior Court on Tuesday.

Audrey Desmond, who attacked state Rep. Maryam Khan last summer after a prayer service following the Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha, will also serve a 16-year suspended sentence upon his release.

Desmond pleaded guilty in April to charges of attempted third-degree sexual abuse, endangerment of minors and strangulation.

In addition, Desmond will be registered as a sex offender for life and will receive court-ordered psychiatric treatment.

Khan, a Democrat from Windsor, said in a statement Tuesday that the attack will change her but she is glad that justice is being done.

“What happened to me just over a year ago was tragic and will shape my life and the lives of everyone involved,” said Rep. Khan. “But I am proud to see some semblance of justice today.”

Still, she said there were aspects of her ordeal that raised warning flags.

“It is important to note that the events of that day are far more common than we would like to admit,” she continued in her statement. “My attack highlighted serious gaps in our mental health care system and in the safety and protection of victims, and has inspired me as a state representative to take action to reform our society and prevent what happened to me from happening to anyone else.”

During this year’s legislative session, Khan proposed a bill that would have made it easier to charge people with hate crimes and also made it easier for witnesses to incidents like hers to intervene and help.

This bill failed in committee during the short session that ended on May 8.

Khan thanked her friends and family for their support, as well as her colleagues in Parliament and her lawyer Aaron Romano.

Khan was rescued from Desmond by former U.S. Army Sergeant Jason Spencer, who was later charged with assault for using excessive force in subduing Desmond. He was filmed kicking Desmond in the head, and under Connecticut law, kicks to the head are considered the use of deadly force.

Spencer was sentenced to one day or expedited rehabilitation in May.