Rutgers-Newark professor Anna Stubblefield, 46, of West Orange, was convicted by a jury on Oct. 2 of sexually assaulting the 35-year-old victim
NEWARK — In letters written by supporters of Rutgers-Newark professor Anna Stubblefield, Superior Court Judge Siobhan Teare on Friday said the mother of two was described as a compassionate person who cares about people with disabilities.
But since Stubblefield sexually assaulted a disabled man, the judge said her actions are "the perfect example of a predator preying on their prey."
Stubblefield "took advantage of her position of power over someone that she knew or should have known was mentally and physically disabled and had no means to resist," Teare said.
A few moments later, the judge sentenced Stubblefield, 46, of West Orange, to 12 years in state prison for abusing the 35-year-old victim, known as D.J., in her Newark office in 2011. D.J. has cerebral palsy and is unable to speak beyond making noises.
Stubblefield has claimed she and D.J. fell in love, and that she communicated with him via a controversial typing method, known as "facilitated communication."
But an Essex County jury determined D.J. is mentally incompetent and could not consent to the sexual activity, and found Stubblefield guilty on Oct. 2 of two counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault. She was facing between 10 and 40 years in prison.
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Standing beside his mother on Friday in the Newark courtroom, D.J.'s brother grew emotional as he discussed how Stubblefield "raped" D.J. and harassed their family.
"I don't think Anna understood the depth of pain she caused my family," the brother said.
"An able-bodied woman raped a disabled young man that could not consent to sex," he later added. "You were wrong, Anna. You committed a crime. There is no gray area."
Stubblefield must serve slightly more than 10 years before becoming eligible for parole. After her release from prison, she will be subject to parole supervision for life and she must comply with the reporting requirements of the state's Megan's Law.
Since Stubblefield was convicted of two counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault, her position as a Rutgers professor is forfeited and she will be disqualified from any future public employment, according to the judge.
The former chairwoman of the Rutgers' philosophy department, Stubblefield was dressed in a pink prison jumpsuit and appeared mostly calm throughout Friday's hearing.
In brief remarks before receiving her sentence, Stubblefield apologized and expressed "my dismay and my regret and my sorrow that my actions have led to so much distress."
But Stubblefield's teenage daughter, Zoe, then stepped to the front of the courtoom and struck a more aggressive tone.
(L-R) Defense attorney James Patton looks toward his client Rutgers-Newark professor Anna Stubblefield, as she addresses the court before being sentenced to 12 years for sexually abusing a disabled man in her Newark office in 2011. Newark, NJ 1/15/16 (Robert Sciarrino | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com) Zoe Stubblefield, whose parents are divorced, claimed her estranged father drove her mother to D.J., and she refuted the claims by D.J.'s family about his mental incompetence. With her mother being in prison, Zoe Stubblefield said she is "forced to take care of myself."
Zoe Stubblefield said she has a mental disability and that her mother is "a very good person" who has taken care of her. Referring to her mother, Zoe Stubblefield said "her being in prison is simply not fair at all."
"She's never done anything wrong in her whole life," said Zoe Stubblefield, referring to her mother. "She's like the cleanest, most goody-two-shoes woman I've ever met."
After returning to her seat, Zoe Stubblefield was ultimately removed from the courtroom by Essex County sheriff's officers, because she had an outburst during the statement of D.J.'s brother.
When D.J.'s brother said he and his mother were praying for the Stubblefield family, including her ex-husband, Zoe Stubblefield shouted an expletive in regard to her father and D.J.'s brother.
The long-running case has centered on the extent of D.J.'s disabilities and whether he was able to communicate with Stubblefield.
During the trial, the state presented testimony from psychologists who determined D.J. is mentally incompetent and cannot consent to sexual activity. As a result of his cognitive impairments, D.J.'s mother and brother have been designated as his legal guardians.
D.J. also wears diapers and requires assistance with walking, bathing, dressing and eating, his mother testified during the trial.
But Stubblefield claimed during the trial that D.J. is not intellectually impaired and was able to communicate through facilitated communication. Under that technique, Stubblefield said she provided physical support to D.J. as he typed messages on a keyboard.
Critics argue the technique is ineffective, saying studies have shown the facilitators are controlling the users' movements. Several scientific organizations have declared the technique is invalid.
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Stubblefield first met D.J. in 2009 through his brother, then a Rutgers student, who was taking a course of Stubblefield's. During one class, Stubblefield presented a video that dealt with facilitated communication, and the brother later asked her for more information about the method to see if it might help D.J.
Over the next two years, Stubblefield worked with D.J. through facilitated communication. During the trial, she claimed D.J. was able to communicate through the typing method, including by writing papers that were presented at conferences and essays for a literature class at Rutgers.
Stubblefield said she and D.J. fell in love and ultimately disclosed their sexual relationship to his mother and brother in May 2011. Looking to have Stubblefield keep her distance, the brother ultimately reported the matter to a Rutgers official and the university later contacted Essex County prosecutors.
During Friday's sentencing, Stubblefield's attorney, James Patton, called for a more lenient sentence, saying she "intended no harm and anticipated no harm."
Patton said Stubblefield did not believe D.J. was mentally defective or physically helpless, but instead considered him intelligent and able to consent. He said she did not try to exploit him, but she was "trying to open up the world so that he could communicate with other people."
"She was a woman who had fallen in love," Patton told the judge, later adding: "This is simply a woman who grossly miscalculated the intelligence of the individual that she believed that she was in a relationship with."
But Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Eric Plant, who tried the case, "used her position of power to carry out this crime upon D.J. and his family." He argued Stubblefield presented herself to D.J.'s family that she could be "his only voice."
"That is how she was able to groom him for sexual behavior," Plant said during the hearing. Plant called for a 15-year prison sentence for Stubblefield.
In a news release, Plant later added that Stubblefield "used her position to prey on the victim.
"What she did was not only criminal, it was cruel. Knowing how desperately families of disabled individuals are for some hope, she mislead the victim's family into believing that she was making progress in helping their son to communicate while all the while she was simply satisfying her own tawdry desires," Plant said in the release. "In the process, she did great damage to this young man, his family and even her own family."
Bill Wichert may be reached at bwichert@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillWichertNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.