A Southern California man was sentenced to prison for the attempted murder of a young girl and the sexual assault of an elderly woman.
Joel James Gonzales, 28, was sentenced to 16 years and 8 months in state prison, according to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office.
Gonzales worked as a caretaker at the Royal Gardens elder care facility in Camarillo where he typically worked with patients who had dementia or Alzheimer’s. He had access to both the assisted living and memory care facilities.
On Oct. 15, 2020, Gonzalez was accused of attacking two patients during his evening shift. The first victim was cornered inside her room located on the assisted living side of the complex.
Gonzalez attacked the woman several times by pushing her down on the bed and attempting to remove her clothing, court documents said. The victim fought back and eventually, Gonzales left the room.
He then went to the memory care side of the facility where he targeted a 90-year-old female patient with dementia. He walked the elderly woman to a storage closet, locked her inside and performed lewd acts on her before facility staff started knocking on the door, authorities said.