AUBURN – A Livermore Falls man was sentenced to 40 years Friday for raping a 76-year-old woman he had known most of his life.

The woman was punched repeatedly and her throat slashed several times during the attack March 11, 2003, in her Livermore Falls home. The tendons in her left hand were severed as she fought for her life.

Kerry Gray, 40, who pleaded guilty to gross sexual assault, attempted murder and arson, was sentenced to 40 years by Androscoggin County Superior Court Justice Ellen Gorman. He was also sentenced to concurrent terms of 20 years for arson and 17 years for attempted murder.

“There is no way to effectively protect society from Mr. Gray except to remove him from it,” Gorman said.

She gave the convicted sex offender a straight sentence without chance of parole.

The woman, her left arm and hand bandaged and held across her heart, was flanked by her family as she sat stoically in the court for the three-hour hearing.

Gray, who is brain-damaged from an automobile accident 20 years ago, went to the woman’s house after he told a neighbor he fantasized about having sex with her, Gorman read from a sentencing report.

Gray did some outside chores for the woman, as he did for other neighbors, and she reluctantly let him into her house that day, Assistant District Attorney Andrew Robinson said while stating information the court would have heard if the case went to trial.

Gorman told the court Gray dragged the woman up the stairs to her bedroom and raped her more than once.

The woman fought back, she said, adding that her face, neck, arms, torso, bedclothes and walls were all stained with blood. according to a report. Gray punched the victim repeatedly and slit her throat, Gorman said.

Gray also cut the phone lines so the woman couldn’t call for help and set the house on fire to create a diversion and mask the crime as he made his escape, Gorman stated.

Defense attorney David Sanders pressed for his client to enter a 24-hour, seven-day constant one-on-one supervised program rather than the Department of Corrections. He said the government failed his client by not providing a program to protect him and society.

Gorman said she did not agree with Sanders that the system failed his client. She said it was impossible to ignore Gray’s deficits and that child abuse, substance abuse and the accident may have taken pieces of his brain, but a psychologist testified that Gray’s impulse judgment control was only impaired.

His crimes, which began at 20 with a burglary, continually became worse to sexually abusing children and then the elderly woman.

The woman survived the attack entirely by her own will, but in the effort she lost the right to live independently and live without fear, Gorman said.

The woman’s family read prepared statements, saying she can no longer can live alone and cannot practice her artistic talents. One of her sons said outside the courtroom that the family was glad it was finally over.

“We find some comfort in knowing that no one else will be hurt by this predator,” he read from a statement.

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