OJAI VALLEY : Man Pleads Guilty in Stalking Case
The defendant in the county’s first felony stalking case entered a surprise plea of guilty just as his trial was getting under way, authorities said Friday.
Harold Owen Edwards, 36, faces up to three years in state prison for stalking his former girlfriend of 13 years, an Ojai Valley woman.
Edwards twice broke into the woman’s home, ransacked her bedroom and shredded her lingerie, prosecutors said.
Deputy Dist. Atty. Lela Henke-Dobroth, supervisor of the prosecutor’s Family Protection Unit, said Edwards still faces two counts of burglary. She said those matters will be determined next week in a non-jury trial.
His guilty plea came Thursday after the prosecutor handling the case, Deputy Dist. Atty. Donna K. Gissing, had given her opening remarks and was preparing to introduce testimony.
Edwards’ attorney, Deputy Public Defender Stephen P. Lipson, has said his client was distraught over the breakup with his longtime girlfriend.
Edwards remains in the Ventura County Jail pending sentencing.
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