Louisville, Ky. (WHAS11) - There was a surprise plea deal in a sexual assault trial Tuesday afternoon.
Police say a man broke into women's homes and sexually assaulted them while they slept. He wasn't arrested until years later.
Potential jurors were assembled and ready to begin hearing evidence in the case Tuesday morning, when 51-year-old Mark Adams announced a surprise plea.
He entered an Alford Plea to 23 felony charges, which meant Adams didn't admit guilt, but admitted there was probably enough evidence to convict him in the case.
The surprise plea deal meant that none of the seven separate victims Adams was charged with sexually assaulting had to testify, sparing them the trauma of having to relieve those attacks in open court.
The agreement included a sentence of 30 years in prison for Adams and he won't be eligible for parole for 20 years.
Adams is accused of targeting women who lived alone in east end neighborhoods near Chamberlain Lane, a place where Adams himself had lived before moving to Pekin, Indiana.
The attacks occurred from 1996 until 2008.
Adams was arrested in 2009 after he was caught with a gun stolen from one victim's home and his DNA connected him to the other attacks.
Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Kristi Gray says Adams is the most prolific serial rapist she's ever prosecuted.
“This is a guy that was pretty much consumed. The amount of time that he had to spend planning and preparing for these basically would have been his whole life,” she said.
