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4 days ago
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Albany man receives two life sentences for 1988 cold case rape and kidnapping
The Brief Reginald Colwell was sentenced to two life terms plus 20 years for kidnapping, raping, and assaulting a woman in a 1988 cold case. The conviction was based on DNA evidence from a preserved sexual assault kit, matched to Colwell in 2019 through a federal initiative. Colwell's life sentences are subject to 1988 parole eligibility guidelines due to the crime's occurrence date. DECATUR, Ga. - An Albany man has been sentenced to two life terms plus 20 years in prison after being convicted of kidnapping, raping, and assaulting a woman in a 1988 cold case, prosecutors announced Tuesday. A DeKalb County jury on May 20 found 58-year-old Reginald Colwell guilty on charges of kidnapping, rape, and aggravated assault for the December 30, 1988, attack. Superior Court Judge Gregory A. Adams, who presided over the trial, handed down the sentence on Tuesday, ordering the terms to be served consecutively. The backstory According to investigators, the 20-year-old victim reported the rape to DeKalb County Police after being attacked while leaving her apartment on Weatherly Drive in unincorporated Stone Mountain. As she locked the front door, a man wearing a ski mask held a knife to her throat and forced her into nearby woods, where he sexually assaulted her and threatened to kill her if she resisted. The victim fled to a nearby neighborhood once the attacker ran off, and a resident helped her call her boyfriend, who took her to the police station. Officers recovered her purse and other items scattered in the woods and transported her to Grady Memorial Hospital for a sexual assault examination. Although DNA testing was not available at the time, the sexual assault kit was preserved by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. In 2015, DeKalb County joined a federally funded effort through the Bureau of Justice Assistance's National Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), which aimed to process long-untested rape kits. In 2019, testing from the victim's case produced a CODIS match to Colwell. A court-ordered DNA sample confirmed the match. Prosecutors said Colwell had been living in DeKalb County at the time of the attack. What's next Because the crime occurred in 1988, Colwell's life sentences fall under the parole eligibility guidelines in place at the time. The Source The DeKalb County District Attorney's Office provided the details on the case. The DeKalb County Sheriff's Office provided the mug shot and arrest record.
Yahoo
5 days ago
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Man sentenced for kidnapping, raping woman in DeKalb nearly 40 years ago
A DeKalb County jury has convicted a man of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a woman in a 1988 cold case. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] On May 20, Reginald Colwell, 58, of Albany was found guilty of kidnapping rape, and aggravated assault. The conviction stems from an incident that happened on December 30, 1988. Investigators said a 20-year-old victim went to the DeKalb County Police Department to report that she had been raped. She told investigators she was headed out to meet her boyfriend earlier that evening and heard a noise as she locked her apartment front door. According to authorities, when she turned around, a man in a ski mask put a knife to her throat and forced her into the woods behind the apartment complex on Weatherly Drive in unincorporated Stone Mountain. TRENDING STORIES: Chase in DeKalb ends in serious crash, blocking traffic on I-285 GA parents accused of waiting to report 6-month-old's death while possessing cocaine Atlanta Public Schools approves new $1.3 billion budget, will cut 135 positions Investigators said the man held the 20-year-old at knifepoint and raped her, threatening to kill her if she refused. After the attack, the man told the victim to stay on the ground and ran off. Authorities said the woman then ran to a nearby neighborhood for help. A woman helped the victim call her boyfriend, who then rushed her to the DKPD to file a report. Investigators searched the woods and found the victim's purse and other belongings. The victim was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital for a sexual assault exam. According to the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office, DNA testing wasn't available at the time of the crime, however, biological evidence collected in the kit was kept by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] In June 2019, evidence from the case was tested with the help of the Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance National Sexual Assault Kit Initiative. From there, they secured a warrant to collect Colwell's DNA sample, pinning him as the suspect in the crime. Investigators learned he was living in DeKalb County in 1988. On Tuesday, a judge sentenced Colwell to two life sentences, plus 20 years, all to be served consecutively.
