Scott Andrew Cronheimer, who pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault and one count of assault, is lead into jail in Chatham, Ont., Tuesday, March 16, 2010. Cronheimer was sentenced to six months and three years probation (Erica Bajer/QMI Agency)

CHATHAM, Ont. -- The fear never goes away.

That was a message three women shared with a Chatham court Tuesday after the man who forever violated their sense of security pleaded guilty.

Scott Andrew Cronheimer, 34, was sentenced to six months in jail after he pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault and one count of assault.

The court heard Cronheimer, of Wheatley, barged into the homes of two of the women and broke into the third woman's house.

Once inside, he terrorized them.

Assistant Crown attorney Randy Semeniuk said on Feb. 6, 2005, Cronheimer went to the home of a 52-year-old woman he'd seen at a mutual friend's party earlier in the night.

She was in her pajamas and Cronheimer grabbed her breasts and vagina before pushing her into a bedroom, throwing her on the ground and getting on top of her.

Semeniuk said Cronheimer attempted to undress the woman, ripping her pajamas.

"She continued to struggle and beg him to stop," the Crown said.

He said at one point the accused straddled the woman and held her hands above her head.

"All of a sudden, he sat back and got up," Semeniuk said.

The only time he spoke with her during the entire ordeal was to tell her not to report the incident.

On April 27, 2008, Cronheimer saw a 47-year-old woman at a party and later that night broke into her home while she was getting ready for bed and her husband slept on the couch.

"While sitting on the toilet, she looked up and saw Scott Cronheimer standing there, staring at her," Semeniuk told the court.

He said Cronheimer grabbed the woman and tried to force her into the bedroom, while her robe gaped open exposing her naked body.

"He had an evil and intense look on his face," Semeniuk said the woman told police, adding he never spoke a word during the incident.

She was able to fight him off and push him out of her house, the Crown said.

Cronheimer then went to the home of a 32-year-old woman, who he knew in high school. He pushed his way into the house, attempted to kiss the woman and then undressed in the kitchen.

Semeniuk said Cronheimer asked the woman if she found him attractive before forcing her into the bedroom and attempting to take her clothes off.

The Crown said she was able to dial 911 on her cellphone, which she tried to hide but he found.

He hung it up and then grabbed her breasts.

Semeniuk said the woman was able to get away and run to a neighbour's house.

When police arrested him, Cronheimer was extremely intoxicated, the Crown said.

Cronheimer blamed his behaviour on alcohol.

The married father of three wept as he apologized before being sentenced.

"I'm truly sorry. I understand that being drunk is not an excuse," he said, reading from a note he pulled from his pocket. "When I drank, I became someone other than myself."

The three victims read their emotional impact statements, which all focused on the ongoing fears they've faced since the crimes.

They are all afraid to be alone in their homes, suffer from anxiety and miss the lives they used to lead.

"A woman does not live through something like that and forget it," said the 52 year old. "I will never be the same."

The woman lives with the guilt of not coming forward sooner and blames herself for what the other women endured.

"I feel an ache in my heart," she said.

The 47-year-old woman detailed the struggles she's faced since Cronheimer's actions.

"I am forever changed over this, forever violated in mind and spirit," she said. "I'm constantly afraid.

"He took my dignity, my security and the life I knew."

His youngest victim said it's impossible to articulate the impact his actions have had on her life.

"I'm a 32-year-old woman who's afraid to live alone," she said. "I don't know how to make this anxiety go away."

She said despite installing an alarm and getting a dog, she is always scared in her home.

"The bruises are long gone but the scars are etched deeply in my mind," she said.

Ontario Court Justice Stephen Fuerth accepted a joint submission for a six-month sentence from the Crown and defence, noting mitigating factors include his lack of a criminal record, guilty pleas, the two years he spent under strict bail conditions and his expressions of remorse.

However, he reprimanded Cronheimer for the long-lasting harm his actions will have — particularly the way he's hampered his victims' ability to trust others.

Defence lawyer Andrew Bradie pointed out that Cronheimer's plea saved the women from going through a trial and noted there were some problems with the Crown's case that could have been tried.

Once released from jail, Cronheimer will spend three years on probation during which he isn't allowed to drink or communicate with his victims. He will also be on the sex offender registry for 20 years, is banned from ever possessing firearms and was ordered to submit a sample of his DNA to the national databank.

All three women said the punishment doesn't fit the crimes.

"It's not long enough," the 47 year old said.

The 32-year-old woman doesn't believe jail will rehabilitate Cronheimer.

The women said they don't believe alcohol was to blame for Cronheimer's actions.

"He had evil intent in his eyes, I knew exactly what he wanted when he walked in," the 47 year old said.