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Trial set in Orfordville beating case

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Dustin Sperb

JANESVILLE — A trial has been scheduled in the criminal case against a man accused of nearly fatally beating an Orfordville woman in May.

Dustin L. Sperb, 21, of 440 N. Parker Drive, Janesville, appeared in Rock County Court on Thursday for a scheduling hearing. He is charged with felony first-degree sexual assault and felony aggravated battery.

Sperb was scheduled to stand trial Feb. 22, and attorneys on both sides have until Dec. 1 to file motions in the case.

Sperb stood mute to the charges in September, and a judge entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.

Sperb is suspected of beating Sandra L. Cole, 47, of 3119 S. Old Highway 11, No. 35, Orfordville, on May 10 in her home in Country Courts Trailer Home Park.

According to the criminal complaint:

Sperb was drinking alcohol at a bonfire in the trailer park on the night of the attack, and witnesses say he was wearing a Yankees baseball cap.

Witnesses told investigators Sperb left the fire for a few hours. Sperb told detectives he walked away and passed out.

Cole’s blood was found on the T-shirt that Sperb wore that night. He also is likely the contributor to a DNA mixture found on Cole’s body.

A New York Yankees baseball cap also was found in Cole’s home.

Cole was unconscious and partially nude when she was found the next day.

A nurse at Mercy Hospital in Janesville evaluated Cole and found signs of sexual assault.

Cole was on life support after the incident, but she later improved and was moved to a rehabilitation center, her son said at the Aug. 31 preliminary hearing.

Sperb remains in jail on a $40,000 cash bond.