Suspects Charged in Bay Area Rape Case

Three suspects have been charged with gang-raping a lesbian in the San Francisco Bay area in December.

Humberto Hernandez Salvador, 31, and Josue Gonzales, 21, were charged Tuesday with kidnapping, carjacking, and raping the woman December 13 in Richmond, Calif., just north of San Francisco. Hate-crime charges were added for Salvador because, authorities say, the woman was taunted for being a lesbian during the attack. Her name has not been disclosed. This could result in a more severe sentence for him if he is convicted, although life in prison is the maximum sentence for both men. Neither entered a plea when appearing in court Tuesday, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Darrell Hodges, 16, was arraigned Monday on similar charges. He will be tried as an adult, while a 15-year-old boy whose name has not been released was taken into police custody last week on suspicion of being involved in the attack. If charged, he will be tried as a minor.

The woman was attacked on December 13 after she stepped out of her car, which had a rainbow bumper sticker, according to the Associated Press. One of the men reportedly approached the 28-year-old woman as she crossed the street, hit her with a blunt object, forced her to remove her clothing, and then, along with three others, raped her for 45 minutes.

When the men saw another person approaching, they forced her into her car and took her to a burned-out building, where she was raped again. They left her naked on the street, taking her car and her wallet. She sought help from a nearby resident, who took her to be examined at a hospital. Her car was found abandoned two days later. (Michelle Garcia, Advocate.com)

Reader Comments

These comments are reproduced as written by visitors to this Web site. They have not been edited for content, grammar, or spelling. The viewpoints appearing here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or views of advocate.com, The Advocate, or its affiliates.

Name: Teri Gruenwald
Date posted: 2009-01-11 1:49 AM
Hometown: Oakland, CA

Comment:

I am horrified by this attack. But I neither believe in the death penalty nor vigilante justice. No matter how heinous the crime, all people are entitled to a fair and speedy trial with an attorney representing them. I fervently hope that they get life in prison and CA prisons are not comfortable places. I hope they feel great remorse, turn their lives around and ask for forgiveness regardless of whether the victim can ever forgive them. Some family members of one perpetrator, women, including his girlfriend, took him to the police. I imagine that the women had been scared when they first heard about the rape, because in the end, when you're a woman, hearing about a brutal rape terrifies us regardless of whether our circumstances in life resemble the victim or not.

Name: Catherine Keach
Date posted: 2009-01-10 7:49 PM
Hometown: Santa Cruz

Comment:

For years I have been speaking to family, friends, and other people familiar and unfamiliar to me about prejudice towards LGBT people in daily life. The indiscriminate discriminate predatory violence of it that we survive daily in America on a mental level and too often on the physical. Most LGBT people who have read about this crime committed against this lesbian woman feel a blow to themselves on some level. I say ow. I am glad that many people (Gay and Straight) came forward to offer her help ,because our public rescues and responses increases the visibility of care for LGBT people, which enhances all our human relationships. I send healing thoughts to this lesbian and to other survivors. You matter.

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