S.J. man pleads guilty to sex crime

A Franklin Township man pleaded guilty today to fondling a 10-year-old girl in 2001.

The Gloucester County prosecutor's office will recommend that Donald Dawson, 32, be sentenced to eight years in state prison for sexual assaulting the girl.

If the recommendation is accepted by a Superior Court judge, Dawson will have to serve 85 percent of the sentence before he can be eligible for parole. He will also be required to register as a sex offender under Megan's Law.

Dawson was indicted in 2005, but failed to appear in court and avoided authorities until January 2007, when he was arrested at his girlfriend's house in Elmer, Salem County. At the time, he was considered one of Gloucester County's 10 most wanted fugitives.

In court today, Dawson acknowledged he fondled the victim "on a number of occasions" between Aug. 1, 2001, and Dec. 1, 2001. Dawson said he had been drinking heavily on a daily basis at the time, and that his memory and judgment were impaired.