By El Latino Newsroom
Jaden Joseph Pullen, an Ojai man previously convicted of forcible rape and sodomy by force in a separate case, pleaded guilty Friday to five felony charges involving the sexual assault of two additional victims, the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office announced.
Pullen, whose date of birth is Jan. 30, 1998, entered guilty pleas to two counts of forcible rape, one count of forcible oral copulation of a minor over 14, one count of oral copulation of a person under 18, and one count of unlawful sexual intercourse.
He also admitted to an aggravating circumstance involving violent conduct.
The charges stem from sexual assaults that occurred in 2018. According to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office, Pullen was known to both victims, and the assaults occurred at a home he shared with one of them in Ojai.
The victims came forward in 2020, after Pullen had been convicted in a separate case of forcible rape and sodomy by force against another victim.
Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko announced Pullen’s change of plea in the case involving the two additional victims.
The guilty plea resolves the five felony charges filed against Pullen in connection with the two victims. Pullen is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 16, 2026, and faces a maximum sentence of 27 years and four months in state prison.
The case was prosecuted by Senior Deputy District Attorney Twyla Atmore, a member of the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office Sexual Assault Unit.
The District Attorney’s Office did not provide additional details about the circumstances of the assaults in its announcement.
Victims Came Forward After Earlier Conviction
The assaults involving the two victims occurred in 2018, but the victims did not come forward until 2020.
According to prosecutors, the victims knew Pullen and had a connection to the residence where the assaults took place. Pullen shared the Ojai home with one of the victims.
The victims came forward following Pullen’s conviction in a separate case involving another victim. In that earlier case, Pullen was convicted of forcible rape and sodomy by force.
The District Attorney’s Office said the new case involves five sexual assault felonies against the two victims who came forward in 2020.
Pullen’s guilty plea means the two victims will not have to testify at a trial scheduled to determine his guilt on the charges.
Atmore, who is prosecuting the case through the District Attorney’s Office Sexual Assault Unit, addressed the impact of the plea on the victims.
“Though the victims still live with the trauma of what the defendant did to them, his guilty plea today will at least spare them from having to relive the assaults on the stand,” Atmore said.
The statement reflects the prosecution’s position regarding the effect a trial could have had on the victims. The victims’ experiences and circumstances were not detailed further in the announcement.
Sexual assault cases can involve lengthy investigations and court proceedings, particularly when allegations concern events that occurred years before they were reported. In this case, the assaults were reported in 2020, two years after the alleged conduct occurred.
The District Attorney’s Office’s Sexual Assault Unit handled the prosecution.
Pullen Faces Up to 27 Years, 4 Months in Prison
Pullen is scheduled to appear for sentencing on Nov. 16, 2026.
Under the terms outlined by the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office, he faces a maximum sentence of 27 years and four months in state prison.
The sentencing hearing will determine the sentence imposed by the court following Pullen’s guilty pleas and admission of the aggravating circumstance involving violent conduct.
The five charges to which Pullen pleaded guilty include two counts of forcible rape, one count of forcible oral copulation on a minor over 14, one count of oral copulation of a person under 18 and one count of unlawful sexual intercourse.
The case involves two victims who came forward after Pullen’s conviction in a separate sexual assault case involving another victim.
The Ventura County District Attorney’s Office identified Pullen as a resident of Ojai and said the assaults involving the two victims occurred at a residence in the city.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Twyla Atmore is handling the prosecution as a member of the office’s Sexual Assault Unit.
District Attorney Erik Nasarenko announced the plea as part of the office’s prosecution of the case.
The guilty plea brings the case to the sentencing phase, with the court scheduled to hear the matter in November.
Pullen’s previous conviction was in a separate case involving forcible rape and sodomy by force. Prosecutors said that conviction occurred before the two additional victims came forward in 2020.
The District Attorney’s Office did not identify the victim from the earlier case in its announcement and did not provide further information about that separate prosecution.
The current case concerns conduct that prosecutors say occurred in 2018 and involves two additional victims.
The maximum potential sentence announced by prosecutors is 27 years and four months in state prison. The final sentence will be determined by the court at the scheduled sentencing hearing.
The case underscores the role of prosecutors’ sexual assault unit in handling felony cases involving allegations of sexual violence and victims who report incidents after a period of time.
Pullen’s guilty plea Friday means the case will proceed without a trial on the five felony charges. His sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 16, 2026, in Ventura County.
