Bond denied again for man accused of exposing himself

An Amherst County man accused of breaking into two college dormitories and exposing himself to women was denied bond for a third time in two weeks in Lynchburg Circuit Court on Friday morning.

Joel Michael Wooldridge, 31, of Monroe, is charged with two felony counts of breaking and entering with intent to commit a misdemeanor, four misdemeanor counts of indecent exposure and one misdemeanor count of trespassing.

Lynchburg Commonwealth’s Attorney Michael Doucette told the court Wooldridge broke into women’s dorms at Randolph College and Lynchburg College.

At Randolph College, Doucette said, Wooldridge broke into a woman’s room early one morning while she was sleeping. The woman awoke to find him in the room touching himself. At Lynchburg College, he said, a woman showering thought she saw her shower curtain move, so she pulled it aside to find Wooldridge buttoning his pants. Doucette said Wooldridge admitted to police that he had been touching himself in that incident as well.

In another incident, he tried to force his way into a bathroom stall at Central Virginia Community College, the prosecutor said.

He is also accused of standing naked in the area of Boonsboro and Langhorne roads while touching himself, exposing himself to female joggers.

Last week, Virginia Tech police charged Wooldridge with peeping into a dwelling or enclosure and obscene sexual display. Witnesses there reported on Aug. 27 that he had exposed himself and engaged in sexual acts in public at the West Ambler Johnson residence hall.

Doucette said Wooldridge had been working in Blacksburg at that time.

Andrew Childress, Wooldridge’s lawyer, told the judge that he was not a flight risk, that he could likely find a job and that he needed to stay out of jail to help take care of his pregnant wife.

Doucette told the court Wooldridge was lying to his family about having a job when instead he would go sleep in the Walmart parking lot in Madison Heights or go out to expose himself.

“(The) evidence is overwhelming that he presents a danger to the public,” he said.

In denying bond, Judge Mosby Perrow said Wooldridge was a danger to himself and the community.

He is scheduled for a trial and preliminary hearing on his local charges on Nov. 30.