One-year sentence for HIV-positive woman

An HIV-positive woman has been sentenced for a year under house arrest for having unprotected sex with a soldier.

Jennifer Murphy, 32, who pleaded guilty to aggravated sexual assault, will serve her term at home.

Jennifer, whose sexual exploits at a Canadian Forces base shook the military, is heading home to Newfoundland to serve her sentence.

Justice Michele Fuerst also sentenced her to a three-year probation.

Justice Fuerst said Murphy displayed 'extraordinarily poor judgment' in engaging in sexual intercourse and oral sex with two men at Canadian Force Base Borden last February 'without regard for their safety' and exposing them 'to the risk of a life threatening disease.'

No condom was used during sex with the soldier, and a condom used with the civilian broke, said Fuerst.

The two men, one a Canadian soldier and the other a civilian visitor, cannot be identified under a court ordered ban.

They have both tested negative for the deadly disease, but their 'fear and apprehension' cannot be discounted, said Fuerst.

When the allegations first surfaced last March, The incident prompted the Department of National Defence to warn all Forces personnel to seek medical advice if they had sex with Murphy.

Murphy, who has no previous criminal record, was herself infected with HIV by a boyfriend in 1994. The disease led to a mood disorder, said Fuerst, and that could have caused Murphy's inappropriate behavior.

Noting that Murphy had already served nine months in jail, Fuerst said she was satisfied that with the correct medication, she would no longer pose a threat.

Murphy's name will be added to the registry of sex offenders.