Record of past crimes comes out

The man suspected in a recent string of sexual assaults in Augusta has a history of bullying and stealing.

According to prosecution records opened to The Augusta Chronicle on Friday, Charles A. "Tony" James, 32, has been in legal trouble repeatedly.

Traffic tickets and misdemeanor charges litter his record, but his serious criminal history began in November 1994, when he and two friends jumped two younger teen boys and stole their Miami Hurricanes jackets.

Mr. James' brother, Steven James, later returned the jackets and claimed it was a joke, but the brothers and Glen Alan Sizemore were prosecuted.

Mr. Sizemore was sentenced to three years in prison. The brothers each received 10 years' probation, with a year in the prison system's boot camp.

In June 1999, the father of a 12-year-old boy with a learning disability called the sheriff's office. The boy said Charles James, whom he knew through family connections, exposed his penis and threatened to rape the boy while chasing him around a living room.

The charge, terroristic threats, was dismissed by the prosecutor's office. The next case stuck.

A woman putting packages away after shopping at Augusta Mall had her purse snatched Dec. 27, 1999. The teacher told officers she recognized the purse-snatcher because he had been in her Langford Middle School class years earlier.

The assailant was Mr. James. Once arrested, he confessed and told officers he had recognized his former teacher before robbing her.

His driver and partner in the purse-snatching was Mr. Sizemore, who was sentenced to eight years in prison. Mr. James pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 years in prison followed by 10 years on probation.

Reach Sandy Hodson at (706) 823-3226 or sandy.hodson@augustachronicle.com.