A graduate student who admits to kissing a woman's breast in a campus elevator last fall should be given a three-month jail sentence, the Crown argues.

Farhood Azarsina is expected to be sentenced on Thursday in provincial court in St. John's.

Azarsina, who is studying engineering at Memorial University, told court Monday that he regrets assaulting a female student in a student centre elevator last September.

Azarsina has pleaded guilty to one charge of sexual assault and said he did not realize at the time of the incident the seriousness of the offence.

In a sentencing submission, Azarsina said he gave in to temptation when he acted on impulse and kissed the woman's breast. 

Azarsina's lawyer, Brian Wentzell, is asking the court for a conditional discharge on grounds that a criminal record would cause permanent damage to Azarsina's career.

In a statement presented to the court, the victim said she is afraid to leave her house and that her studies have suffered.

The Crown said the incident is serious enough to warrant a three-month sentence.