Man pleads guilty to multiple counts of rape

PORT CLINTON — A man who previously pleaded guilty to raping a child has since withdrawn his former guilty plea in exchange for receiving a fixed 30-year prison term. At a court hearing on June 27, James R. Twigg, 39, who does not have a listed address, withdrew his former guilty plea of one count of rape, a first-degree felony, and pleaded guilty to three counts of rape, each a first-degree felony. In a motion to withdraw his former not-guilty plea dated June 24, Twigg and his attorney, Kate Pruchnicki, stated that Twigg initially pleaded guilty to the one count of rape as part of an agreement to "resolve (the) matter short of proceeding to trial." As part of the agreement, Twigg was given the following two options: • A recommended sentence of 25 years to life • A fixed term of 30 years in prison "After further consideration, Mr. Twigg regrets his initial choice and wishes to elect the second option as to an agreed-upon sentencing recommendation," the court document states. Twigg is scheduled to be sentenced at 10:45 a.m. on Aug. 8. As part of his new guilty plea, Twigg has indicated that he understands that while the judge could potentially sentence him to 30 years, the judge could elect to sentence him to a minimum term of 33 years and a maximum term of 39-and-a-half years in prison, according to court records. If the judge ultimately decides to sentence Twigg to the fixed 30-year prison term, he will be unable to file an appeal of that sentence later on, records state. Prosecutors agreed to dismiss two other pending Ottawa County cases — in each, he faces a single count of rape — with prejudice if he pleaded guilty. Dismissing with prejudice means that prosecutors cannot refile the same charges again in the future. Twigg will additionally be classified as a Tier 3 sex offender, which means that he must verify home and work addresses every three months for the rest of his life, according to court records. Background Twigg was initially indicted by an Ottawa County grand jury in December 2024 on a single count of rape, a first-degree felony. The crime occurred between October 2020 and October 2021 and involved him "engaging in sexual conduct" with someone less than 10 years of age at the time of the incident, according to his indictment. On April 1, Twigg's attorney, Kate Pruchnicki, previously filed a motion for Twigg to undergo "a psychological/psychiatric evaluation," in order to determine: • His current mental health condition • The likelihood that he will reoffend • Placing him in an alternative treatment facility other than state prison The motion was approved the following day, and Twigg underwent a pre-sentence evaluation at the Court Diagnostic and Treatment Center in Toledo. The results from that evaluation were not made available, according to court records.