A St. Michael, N.D., man was sentenced Friday on a charge of attempted aggravated sexual abuse, U.S. Attorney Timothy Purdon announced.
U.S. District Chief Judge Ralph Erickson sentenced Joseph Brown Jr., 59, to life imprisonment, as well as lifetime supervised release in the event he is ever released from custody.
He also was ordered to pay $100 special assessment to the Crime Victim's Fund and will need to register as a sex offender.
Brown was found guilty by a 12-person jury Nov. 3, 2011 of attempting to rape a young woman while using force.
According to Purdon, Brown drove the victim to his rural farm on the Spirit Lake Indian Reservation on Aug. 18, 2009, and attempted to rape her. The victim fought Brown off and ran away, hiding under a tractor, but Brown found her, drug her into the house and again assaulted and attempted to rape her.
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The victim again escaped and notified law enforcement.
Brown faced a mandatory minimum sentence of life in prison because he had more than two previous convictions for serious violent crimes, including three sex-related crimes and felonious restraint and aggravated assault crimes.
