Jury finds Dundee man guilty of multiple sex abuse charges

A Yamhill County jury has found a Dundee man guilty on multiple charges stemming from allegations he sexually abused a then-juvenile girl more than a decade ago.

After a three-day trial, jurors found David Michael Bahr, 43, guilty on May 9 of first-degree charges of sexual abuse, attempted unlawful sexual penetration and attempted sodomy. He was found not guilty on one count of first-degree unlawful sexual penetration.

Circuit Court Judge Ladd Wiles will render Bahr’s sentence at a hearing set for May 14 in McMinnville.

Bahr was arrested and charged in September 2023 allegedly abusing a girl under the age of 13 for three months in summer 2012 and then on three occasions in September 2013.

Bahr was arrested on a warrant issued by Wiles following the indictment. He was held on $150,000 bail at the Yamhill County jail. Over the past 10 months the case has progressed through a series of motions and developments, including switching his counsel from McMinnville lawyer Mark Pihl to high-profile defense attorney Ted Corum.

The prosecution and the defense failed to reach an amiable decision during a plea hearing held in January.

First-degree sexual abuse, sodomy and unlawful sexual penetration are Measure 11 charges that, if the defendant is found guilty, require stiff mandatory minimum sentences.

The first two charges require incarceration for a minimum of 75 months, while the latter can net a defendant a 100-month sentence. Whether the sentences are served consecutively or concurrently is determined by Wiles.

Bahr has a past history of criminal behavior: He pleaded guilty to failing to register as a sex offender in 2013, the same year he pleaded guilty to possession of controlled substances, for which he was sentenced to 60 days in jail.