Judge Orders Forensic Screening in Child Sex Abuse Case

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In a status hearing on Feb. 9, DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan heard and accepted a motion for forensic testing in a child sex abuse case. 

The 31-year-old defendant is charged with first-degree child sex abuse. On Feb. 27, 2022, the defendant arrived at his girlfriend’s residence on the 900 block of Kennedy Street, NW, where he allegedly began to inappropriately touch his 10-year-old niece after his girlfriend fell asleep. According to court documents, he took the victim into another room where he allegedly proceeded to sexually assault her.  

At the hearing, council spoke with Judge Raffinan in privacy about the details of the motion for roughly 15 minutes. She then agreed to order forensic screening to determine the defendant’s competency. 

Judge Raffinan scheduled to next hearing for after the report is completed.

A mental observational hearing is slated for Feb. 15.