Palm Springs Woman Gets 3 Years Probation For Trying To Cut Off Husband's Penis With Scissors

PALM SPRINGS (CBSLA.com) — A Palm Springs woman was sentenced Friday to three years probation and 420 hours of community service for trying to cut off her husband's penis with heavy-duty scissors.

Virginia Valdez, 72, pleaded guilty to one count of assault with a deadly weapon likely to cause great bodily injury, along with a sentence-enhancing allegation of domestic violence, for the Dec. 3, 2011, attack on her now ex-husband, Cesar Valdez, at the couple's home.

During Friday's hearing, Cesar Valdez, who was 62 at the time of the attack, criticized the criminal justice system for moving slowly in resolving the case, which may have been the case because he is a male victim of domestic abuse.

"I am here in front of you today to emphasize that male spouses can also be victims of domestic violence, but in some cases, men are afraid to talk for fear of ridicule or for fear of being labeled as some sort of freak or a wimp," he said.

An additional charge of inflicting corporal injury on a spouse was dismissed during Virginia Valdez's sentencing at the Palm Springs courthouse.

Valdez could have faced up to nine years in prison if she had been convicted of both felony charges, prosecutors said.

According to an arrest warrant affidavit, Valdez and her husband were having oral sex when she announced that she had to brush her teeth, then "retrieved a pair of scissors and cut the victim's penis."

Valdez's husband was represented by celebrity attorney Gloria Allred, who also issued a statement.

"Cesar is left with some resentment against the criminal justice system because he feels that if he had been a woman victim of domestic violence, that the case would not have been permitted to be delayed for so long and that the punishment for Virginia would have been harsher," she said.

After the attack, Cesar Valdez screamed in pain, then drove himself to Desert Regional Medical Center, where he told police that his wife had tried to cut off his penis, according to the affidavit.

The affidavit said the victim required "advanced medical (attention)" that included four stitches.

As part of her sentence, Virginia Valdez was also barred from having any contact with her former husband for 10 years.

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