Asheville man gets 24 years in prison in sex assault case

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — A Buncombe County man will spend more than 24 years in prison after being found guilty Wednesday of second-degree forcible sex offense and other charges.

Ronald Eugene Patton, 68 of Asheville, was found guilty of second-degree forcible sex offense, interfering with a state’s witness and habitual felon in a January 2019 sexual assault in Leicester.

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Buncombe County District Attorney Todd Williams said Patton assaulted a 23-year-old woman after she fell asleep.

"Mr. Patton was convicted of rape once before in the '80s. With this conviction, he’s more than likely to die in the custody of the state of North Carolina Know that we take that very seriously," Williams said.

Patton was sentenced to serve 12-15 1/2 years in prison for interfering with a state’s witness, to be followed by a consecutive term of 12-19 1/2 years for the second-degree forcible sex offense.

Patton must register as a sex offender and was ordered to have no contact with the victim.

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