Jonathan Fidone, the Hollister man convicted of molesting a 19-month-old child, is set for a sentence hearing after a judge ruled against his motion for a new trial.
Fidone, age 22 when convicted in July by a San Benito County jury, is scheduled for sentencing at 9 a.m. Thursday in room 101 at the courthouse before Judge Steven Sanders.
That will come a week after visiting Judge Alfonso Fernandez denied the motion from Fidone’s attorney, Art Cantu, for a new trial based on accusations of juror misconduct. Fernandez ruled that the accused juror had not been biased against the defendant, according to court records.
The defense’s motion has delayed Fidone’s sentencing for molesting a 19-month-old child in July 2010.
A San Benito County jury in July 2011 found Fidone guilty after a five-day trial on felony counts of sexual penetration by a foreign object, forcible lewd act upon a child and aggravated sexual assault of a child.
He could face 15 years to life in prison for one charge alone, aggravated sexual assault of a child.
Fidone was arrested July 17, 2010, after a witness saw him in a locked bedroom with the child. After breaking down the door, the witness saw Fidone performing lewd acts with the child.
During the trial, the jury heard testimony from four Hollister officers, a nurse and two forensic science technicians from the California Department of Justice. Other testimony included the witness and the child’s mother. Hospital records, pictures and blood evidence also were used.
