sexual assault

New Sexual Assault Hotline Launches in Arlington

By Ethan Rothstein

Doorways for Women and FamiliesVictims of sexual assault in Arlington have a new number to call for support when they are most vulnerable.

Doorways for Women and Families, a nonprofit designed to support women and children who suffer from domestic violence and homelessness, launched the hotline to pair with its 37-year-old, 24-hour domestic violence hotline.

The hotline’s number is 703-237-0881.

Like the domestic violence hotline, victims can call in and Doorways partners with Arlington County to provide resources, such as shelter or police support.

“We’re pleased to partner with Doorways for Women and Families on this important resource for our community,” County Board Chair Mary Hynes said in a press release. “Doorways’ track record with the domestic violence hotline has been outstanding, providing victims with expert advice and linkages to needed services. By expanding hotline services to include sexual assault, we will again tap into Doorways’ expertise and knowledge to quickly and effectively link people to vital community services and resources.”

The hotline will pair Doorways with the Arlington County Police Department, the Arlington Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, the Sheriff’s Office and Department of Human Services. Among the services provided will be Commonwealth’s Attorney accompaniment during hospitalization for victims — a frequently traumatic event, Doorways said.

“We will play an important role in our community’s response, but it is one of many,” Doorways Executive Director Caroline Jones said. “Now is the right time to intentionally define our community’s coordinated response as we are seeing record numbers of people reaching out for our help — realizing they no longer have to face these issues in silence and shame.”

The full press release announcing the new hotline can be read after the jump.

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Sexual Assault Bill Sponsored by Favola, Ebbin Passes Senate

By Ethan Rothstein

State Sen. Barbara Favola speaks to the crowd at the groundbreaking for the Union at Queen apartmentsA bill co-sponsored by Arlington legislators that would require college campuses to provide survivors of sexual assaults with options for off-campus resources — like counseling and law enforcement — has passed the state Senate.

Sens. Barbara Favola (D) and Adam Ebbin (D) are co-patrons of SB 1329, which would require colleges to establish memorandums of understanding with “a local sexual assault crisis center or other victim support service,” refer victims to the center and encourage them to preserve physical evidence for a police investigation.

“This legislation represents a positive step in protecting our young people and making college campuses safer,” Favola said in a press release. “SB 1329 strengthens support systems for sexual assault survivors and empowers these survivors to pursue charges against their assailants.”

The bill would also allow victims to submit anonymous reports and provides “for nonretaliation by the institution against victims who fear their conduct may also be questioned or who are concerned that an official report might jeopardize their academic status.”

The bill passed the Senate unanimously. It also was referred out of two committees unanimously. It will now go before the heavily Republican House of Delegates.

The Senate also unanimously passed two companion bills, SB 1193 and SB 712. SB 1193 would require colleges and universities to prominently mark a student’s permanent transcript if the student withdraws, is expelled or is placed on probation for a sexual assualt violation. SB 712 requires higher education employees to report any student sexual assault they are aware of to the campus’ Title IX coordinator within four hours.

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Favola, Sullivan Introduce Campus Sexual Assault Bills

By Ethan Rothstein

State Senator Barbara Favola at Arlington Democrats 2011 election victory partyThe 2015 session of the Virginia General Assembly official begins at noon today, and a pair of Arlington lawmakers are using the session to try to protect victims of sexual assault on college campuses.

Del. Rip Sullivan (D), in his first regular session in the General Assembly after being chosen in a special election to replace now-retired Del. Bob Brink, has already filed a bill aimed to help campus sex assault victims. HB1508 would require college campuses to have a memorandum of understanding with “a local sexual assault crisis center” to allow those reporting sexual assault to be able to take their claims off campus.

State Sen. Barbara Favola (D) is co-patron of a bill in the senate, along with two Loudoun senators, Sens. Jennifer Wexton (D) and Jill Vogel (R). Favola said that despite Rolling Stone magazine retracting its story detailing a gang rape at a University of Virginia fraternity house, she’s still concerned about university responses to reports of sexual crimes on their campuses.

“The Rolling Stone article gave me great concern, even though I know there were questions on whether it happened,” she told ARLnow.com this morning. “The point is this is a pretty serious problem on college campuses… We wanted to empower victims to come forward and report.”

The bills would allow victims to make anonymous reports if they do not want to officially report an assault, and it would provide amnesty to students who are worried that the circumstances under which they were assaulted could jeopardize their academic standing — for example, if a 19-year-old student was raped while drinking underage.

“My bill shouldn’t be a burden” for colleges that have stringent sexual assault policies already on the books, she said, “but for the colleges and universities have not been as aggressive with this, this bill will actually be able to enforce a zero-tolerance for sexual assault policy.”

With Vogel as a co-sponsor, Favola and Sullivan hope the bills can draw votes from the Republican side of the aisle — a requirement if either were to get passed by the Republican-controlled houses in the state legislature.

“I hope this bill with Sen. Favola is one that will receive bipartisan support in this environment,” Sullivan said. “There is a lot of attention paid to the hot-button issues in which there can be disagreement and things turn into partisan wrangling, but a lot of good law is, as I understand it, made every session on a bipartisan basis that doesn’t attract much attention.”

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Crime Report: Violent, Drunken Cab Fare Dispute

By ARLnow.com

Old Arlington County police car paint job (file photo)A woman was arrested for public drunkenness and assaulting police officers after a cab fare dispute last week.

On Tuesday, Dec. 23, just before 6:00 p.m., police responded to an address near the Rosslyn Metro for a cab fare dispute, a fairly routine call. However, the taxi passenger was found to be drunk in public and was arrested — and she didn’t go down without a fight, police say.

The woman allegedly kicked two police officers as she was being loaded into the patrol car, injuring them.

From this week’s Arlington County crime report:

BATTERY OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER (2 COUNTS) / DRUNK IN PUBLIC,141223047, 1800 block of N. Nash St, On 12/23/14 at 1752 hours, officers responded for a cabfare dispute. The suspect was located and she was intoxicated in public. After the suspect was arrested, she kicked two police officers as she was being loaded into the patrol vehicle. Both officers sustained minor injuries and the suspect was held without bond.

Also in this week’s crime report, a woman reported being sexually assaulted in Ballston by a man with whom she went on a date. The alleged crime happened after she used the man’s bathroom, as she was trying to leave to go home.

SEXUAL ASSAULT, 141217058, 900 block of N Stuart St, A female victim told police that between 2030 hours and 2115 hours on 12/17/14, she went to a restaurant with a known male subject. She dropped him off at his residence and requested to use the bathroom before heading home. Upon doing so, she was pushed onto his bed where he she was sexually assaulted. The victim spoke with detectives and the investigation continues.

The rest of the crime report, after the jump.

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Late Night Sexual Assault Reported Near Middle School

By ARLnow.com

Police car (file photo)A woman was sexually assaulted near Kenmore Middle School last week.

The incident, which happened on the unit block of S. Carlin Springs Road in the Glencarlyn neighborhood, was reported around 2:00 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 2. The victim told police that a man blocked her way and insisted that she kiss him in order to get past.

“Becoming increasingly concerned, the victim attempted to kiss the suspect on the cheek to placate him when the suspect grabbed the victim’s head and forcing a mouth-to-mouth kiss,” Arlington County Police said in a crime report. “As the victim was leaving, she was chased by the suspect who grabbed her by the arms before she could enter her vehicle. The suspect then forced one of her hands onto his crotch.”

The woman was able to break free and drive off. So far, no arrests have been reported in the case.

Crime Report: ‘Hate Crime’ in Clarendon

By ARLnow.com

Police car lightsA person was attacked in Clarendon Monday night and police are describing the incident as a possible hate crime.

Police say a 35-year-old man used “racial slurs” before assaulting a victim at a bar on the 3100 block of Clarendon Blvd. The suspect is described as a 6’1″, 220 lbs white male with brown hair and brown eyes.

From this week’s Arlington County crime report:

ASSAULT AND BATTERY (HATE CRIME), 141103069, 3100 block of Clarendon Blvd, On 11/3/14 at 2320 hrs, an unknown subject used racial slurs before assaulting the victim. Both were patrons of a bar at the time of the incident. Suspect is described as a non-hispanic white male 601/220, Bro/bro, approximately 35 years of age, wearing a black leather coat and a plaid button up shirt.

Also this week, a woman in the Columbia Heights West neighborhood told police she was attacked by her boyfriend after refusing to have sex with him.

STRANGULATION AND DOMESTIC ASSAULT AND BATTERY, 141102011, 800 block of S Greenbrier St, A female victim states she was strangled and punched after refusing the sexual advances of her boyfriend. The male suspect fled when he found out police were called. Warrants and an Emergency Protective Order were issued.

On Sunday night, a woman said she was sexually assaulted by her boyfriend after the boyfriend accused her of cheating on him with another man, who was staying over her apartment at the time. The boyfriend accused the woman of punching him in the face.

In the end, no one was charged.

SEXUAL ASSSAULT, 141102046, 3100 block of Lee Highway, On 11/2/14 at 1143 hrs, a female subject states she was sexually assaulted by her boyfriend after the boyfriend accused her of engaging in sexual intercourse with another male, who was currently in her apartment at the time of the boyfriend’s visit. The boyfriend accused the the female subject of punching him in the face during their argument over the other male staying there. Magistrate denied warrants.

A police spokesman could not be reached for comment.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump. All named suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty.

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Man Pleads Guilty to 25-Year-Old Rape Case

By ARLnow.com

William Couch (photo courtesy ACPD)A man has pleaded guilty to two 25-year-old cold cases in Arlington.

William Couch pleaded guilty to abduction with intent to defile and object sexual penetration in the cases, according to an Arlington County Police Department press release.

According to police, Couch admitted to the May 9, 1989 sexual assault and robbery of a woman whose home was broken into as she slept, and the Sept. 11, 1989 rape of a woman who was forced into a maintenance room by a man after she arrived early for her shift at work.

“In January of 2013, cold case detectives reviewed evidence from these cases and in June of 2013 William Couch became a suspect,” according to the press release. “On February 17, 2014 Couch was indicted on charges in connection to these assaults. On June 12, 2014, he pled guilty and was sentenced to 45 years on each case.”

The cases were investigated by detectives Rosa Ortiz and Robert Icolari, of ACPD’s Cold Case Squad, and prosecuted by Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Cari Steele. Ortiz is best known for being the lead detective in the Carl Diener murder case.

“Once again the value of a having a Cold Case Squad has been proven as we were able to bring some closure to two victims while bringing this sexual predator to justice,” said Deputy Chief Daniel Murray, commander of ACPD’s Criminal Investigations Division.

UPDATED: Police Investigating Assault on Custis Trail

By ARLnow.com

Police car lights(Updated at 1:20 p.m.) Arlington County police are investigating an assault and indecent exposure incident on the Custis Trail near Rosslyn.

Police say a man grabbed a woman as she was either running or walking by, spun her around, and exposed himself to her. The incident happened on the trail between N. Quinn Street and N. Oak Street just after 11:00 a.m. The man then fled west on the trail, possibly running into a nearby apartment complex.

This was not a sexual assault, as earlier reported, according to Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.

The man is described as a white male in his 30s, 5’10” with a heavy muscular build and short, partially balding brown hair. He was wearing tennis shoes, a dark jacket, a white t-shirt and dark shorts at the time of the incident.

A police K-9 unit was brought in to try to track the suspect, but that was made impossible by the rain. So far police have not made any arrests, Sternbeck said.

Officers believe the suspect may be responsible for at least one other, similar assault that occurred in the same area, according to scanner traffic.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

"Sun shines through" (Flickr pool photo by BrianMKA)

H-B Parents Peeved By Document Disappearance — Some parents of H-B Woodlawn students are up in arms after three documents that questioned a proposal to move the secondary program to a new building disappeared from an Arlington Public Schools website. One parent called the removal of the documents “heavy-handed and disturbing.” [Falls Church News-Press]

Arlington Man Charged With Fairfax Sex Assault — Sloan Wilson Rappoport, a 44-year-old Arlington resident and former George W. Bush administration official, has been charged with sexually assaulting a woman he met at a Bailey’s Crossroads clothing store. Police say Rappoport invited the woman into his Mercedes-Benz, then drove to a nearby location and sexually assaulted her. [Washington Post]

Clement to Run for School Board — Perennial Green Party candidate Audrey Clement is planning on running for Arlington School Board. Currently running in the race are three candidates seeking the Democratic endorsement: Barbara Kanninen, Greg Greeley and Nancy Van Doren. [InsideNoVa]

Airline Changes at DCA — As a result of changes related to the American Airlines/US Airways merger, JetBlue, Virgin America and Southwest Airlines will all be expanding their presence at Reagan National Airport. [MWAA]

Endorsements for Howze, Vihstadt — Arlington County Board candidates Alan Howze (D) and John Vihstadt (I) have picked up notable endorsements in the past week. Howze has been endorsed by the Sierra Club, which says he has a “depth of knowledge and understanding of key environmental issues facing the County.” Vihstadt has been endorsed by the local firefighters union, which says it shares Vihstadt’s spending priorities — an emphasis on core services and opposition to projects like the streetcar and the aquatics center.

Will Arlington Regret HOT Lanes Opposition? — Writing about what may be the area’s “worst commute” — from Fredericksburg to the District via I-95 and I-395 — highway historian Earl Swift suggests that Arlington may ultimately regret its opposition to HOT lanes on I-395. Running HOT lanes from I-95 to just before Arlington on I-395 “could spawn new and fearsome jams on I-395, choking Arlington County with the exhaust of idling legions of cars,” Swift writes. “The HOT lanes could be so popular, and inspire so fierce a public demand for their extension to the Potomac, that talks between state and county resume.” [Atlantic Cities, Washington Post]

Flickr pool photo by BrianMKA

Police: Break-In Suspect Fondled Sleeping Woman

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 2:25 p.m. on 12/23/21) A Woodbridge man is in jail after police say he broke into an apartment and started fondling a woman as she slept.

Joshua [Redacted], 23, has been charged with burglary with intent to commit rape and sexual assault and battery. Police say he broke a window and gained entry into an apartment on the 4500 block of Arlington Blvd, near the National Guard Readiness Center, around 3:00 a.m. this past Sunday morning. Once inside, police say he started touching a woman who was in bed asleep.

“[Redacted] entered the victim’s bedroom and began to fondle her as she slept,” according to an Arlington County Police Department press release. “The 36 year-old female awoke at approximately 3:10 a.m., as [Redacted] was lying next to her and screamed. The victim ran to the lobby of her apartment complex and called police.”

“As officers were conducting their initial search of the apartment, a male subject matching [Redacted’s] description was seen standing outside the rear of the residence,” the press release continued. “A foot pursuit ensued and [Redacted] was taken into custody.”

[Redacted] was denied bond and is currently being held at the Arlington County Detention Facility.

Crime Report: Man’s Ear Severed in Fight

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County Police Department badgeA man lost part of his ear in a fight last week.

The incident happened Friday afternoon at a residence in the Alcova Heights neighborhood. The upper portion of man’s ear was severed, but he was “very uncooperative” and wouldn’t tell police what happened, according to Arlington County Police Department spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.

Police do not have any suspects in the case.

From this week’s Arlington County crime report:

MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 3600 block of S. 3rd Street. At 2:00 pm on November 29, an intoxicated male subject’s ear was severed in a fight. An investigation is ongoing.

Earlier this week, someone lit a field marker flag on fire at Long Bridge Park, causing minor damage.

ARSON, 400 block of S. Long Bridge Drive. Between 3:00 pm on December 2 and 7:00 am on December 3, an unknown subject lit one of the field markers on a soccer field on fire. No suspect description is available.

Police are also investigating a report of a woman being sexually assaulted after leaving a bar in the Courthouse neighborhood last Sunday night.

The woman was intoxicated at the time, can’t remember details of the alleged incident and reported it three days later, according to Sternbeck. There are no suspects in the case.

“The investigation is ongoing,” Sternbeck said.

SEXUAL ASSAULT, 1400 block of N. Courthouse Road. Between 10:30 pm on November 24 to 12:07 am on November 25, a female victim reported she was allegedly sexually assaulted after leaving a bar. An investigation is ongoing.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump. All named suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Note that ACPD is now including case numbers and basic details of minor incidents in its crime report.

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