Eavesdropper faces prison

A Yuba City man will be sentenced to 12 years in prison for calling two women on his cell phone last year and threatening to harm them or their families if they did not perform sex acts on themselves, according to the Sutter County District Attorney's Office.

David Timothy Avery eavesdropped on the women's conversations in a bank and restaurant, gleaning their home phone numbers and personal information about them and their families before calling, Deputy District Attorney Susan Green said Friday.

“People should just watch where and when they reveal private information in public,” said Green.

Avery, 39, who was sentenced to three years in prison in 1999 for a similar offense, pleaded guilty March 24 in Judge Robert Damron's court to two charges of making harassing phone calls.

Avery, who was charged in August, also pleaded guilty to penetration with a foreign object, using force or fear to induce one of the women to do that to herself, said Green.

“You don't have to touch someone to do a sex act,” she said.

The plea included agreeing to the 12-year sentence. He will have to serve at least 85 percent of the term, said Green.

A sentencing hearing is set for April 28.

The two women were pleased with the plea agreement and will not have to testify because of the guilty plea, she said.

Detectives found Avery by tracing calls from his cell phone, said Green.

“He won't stop. He's a sick individual,” she said.

Appeal-Democrat reporter Rob Young can be reached at 749-4710. You may e-mail him at ryoung@appeal-democrat.com.