Oregon Man Sentenced to Life in Prison Following 166 Arrests
A 41-year-old man from Oregon, who has a rather extensive criminal record totaling 166 arrests, was sentenced to life in prison on Friday.
Joshua Corey Neely, arrested in January 2023 for exposing himself to a female employee and a security guard at a clothing store, received a life sentence without parole. As stated in a news release from the Washington County District Attorney’s Office, this incident was another chapter in a long history of criminal behavior.
Although this particular charge usually comes with a one-year prison term for a first-time offender, Neely’s history includes 55 prior convictions, seven of which are felonies.
At the time of his arrest, Neely was out on parole, while he unsuspectingly engaged a clothing store clerk at Portland’s Washington Square Mall. He spent time meandering through the store and gathering items. In a shocking turn of events, he reportedly asked a female employee for assistance while naked in the changing room, then proceeded to fully expose himself.
He even attempted to solicit the woman for sex, trying to lure her into his dressing area. The clerk wasted no time in contacting security, which prompted Neely to flee the store with stolen sunglasses.
Local police subsequently apprehended the registered sex offender that same day. During the sentencing, Neely’s legal team argued that he posed a “mental danger” to society, referencing a police report from a past rape conviction in 2007 that indicated he had been under the influence of methamphetamine and believed his mother was royalty.
Despite this defense, the judge sentenced Neely to life in prison, a decision dictated by state law for individuals with two felony convictions for sexual offenses. Remarkably, Neely still has two unresolved cases for assault and attempted assault in Washington County.
Neely’s extensive criminal history stretches back to when he was just 14, encompassing charges ranging from attempted rape and robbery to various assaults and failure to register as a sex offender.
