Suspect in AIDS case remains lodged in jail.

Penn

By Allison Scarbrough. Contributing Editor.

LUDINGTON — The White Cloud man who faces a felony for not disclosing he has AIDS to his sex partner remains lodged in the Mason County Jail, said Ludington Police Chief Mark Barnett.

Gerald Anthony Penn, 44, of 777 Cole Creek Lane, faces a felony count of AIDS – sexual penetration with an uninformed partner and a misdemeanor count of aggravated domestic violence. Penn faces up to four years in prison and/or a $5,000 fine for count 1 and up to one year in jail and/or a $1,000 fine for count 2.

Penn was arrested Jan. 16 by the Ludington Police Department after police were dispatched to a disturbance call involving “someone banging on a door” on North James Street at 9:02 p.m., Barnett said. When officers arrived, they found a male subject in the driveway who appeared upset, he said. The person was identified as Penn. After interviewing Penn and a male victim, police were able to “ascertain what had taken place,” Barnett said. “Officers advised the victim of the illness status of the subject (Penn).”

The victim was also arrested on an unrelated charge, the chief said, and both remain lodged in jail.

It is unknown at this point whether the victim has contracted the AIDS virus, he said.

Penn is scheduled to appear in court for a probable cause hearing next Wednesday, Feb. 3, at 3 p.m. and a preliminary exam, Feb. 10, at 11:15 a.m., according to his court file in 79th District Court.

His bail was set at $10,000/10 percent.