Bernard betts-king, 60 year old care worker has been charged with sexually assaulting both women at center’s office i n fairfax country, virginia.
The caregiver who worked at a centre for adults with disabilities has been accused of raping and impregnating two clients in Fairfax County, Virginia.
In one case, the woman was unable to say who assaulted her. In the second case, the woman identified 60-year-old Bernard Betts-King as her attacker.
DNA tests conducted on the second victim's baby show a 99 per cent chance that Betts-King is the father, court documents say. Fairfax County police say DNA results are pending in the other case
Both women , who police did not identify, were clients of MLVE Community Centre in Springfield, where Betts-King worked as a behavioral specialist. The mission of the centre is to "employ and support" people with disabilities.
Police began an investigation in 2017 when a doctor discovered that one of the clients, a 29-year-old woman with Down's syndrome, was five months pregnant. She later gave birth in February 2018.
A year later, police said another client at the centre, a 33-year-old woman with intellectual disabilities, was raped.
The case was reported to police in August 2018 after her doctor discovered she was pregnant. She also gave birth.
Last month Betts-King was charged with sexually assaulting both women.
Betts-King was held without bond last week after a Fairfax County prosecutor outlined some of the allegations at a Wednesday hearing. Betts-King's attorney said his client denies the allegations.
Advocates say the case underscores a problem that has received less attention in the the sexual assault of the intellectually disabled.
Numbers produced by the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics for an NPR investigation last year found those with intellectual disabilities are sexually assaulted at seven times the rate of people without disabilities.
“It's an epidemic that most are unaware of,” said Leigh Ann Davis, director of criminal justice initiatives at the disability rights group the Arc.
The Fairfax County cases come as another in Phoenix has grabbed national attention. A woman with intellectual disabilities who was in a vegetative state gave birth to a child in December.
A nurse at the health-care facility where the woman was staying was charged in January with her sexual assault.
MVLE, in Springfield, Virginia, is privately run but contracts with Fairfax County to provide services. It served about 300 clients last year.
Medical records show the 29-year-old woman in Fairfax County became pregnant between 26-30 May 2017, according to a search warrant filed in Fairfax County court.
During that period, the woman was enrolled in a daily work program on the MVLE campus, and a support staff member was overseeing her. The search warrant does not say whether that was Betts-King.
Fairfax County prosecutor George Freeman IV told a judge at the bond hearing on Wednesday that the woman has the “mind of a 5-year-old”.
Mr Freeman said Betts-King told detectives after his arrest he engaged in consensual sex with the woman once in MVLE's offices and told her it had to be quick, so a supervisor didn't find them.
“He said she came on to him,” Mr Freeman told the judge.
Under Virginia law, a person with a significant intellectual disability is deemed incapable of consenting to sex.
The woman, who is of Korean descent, gave birth to a girl in February 2018, according to the search warrant. Detectives wrote in the court document that the child appeared to be biracial, having darker skin and curly black hair. Prosecutors said Betts-King is an immigrant from Sierra Leone who holds a green card
BY KHADIJAH YAKUBU
Credit; Washington post.
In one case, the woman was unable to say who assaulted her. In the second case, the woman identified 60-year-old Bernard Betts-King as her attacker.
DNA tests conducted on the second victim's baby show a 99 per cent chance that Betts-King is the father, court documents say. Fairfax County police say DNA results are pending in the other case
Both women , who police did not identify, were clients of MLVE Community Centre in Springfield, where Betts-King worked as a behavioral specialist. The mission of the centre is to "employ and support" people with disabilities.
Police began an investigation in 2017 when a doctor discovered that one of the clients, a 29-year-old woman with Down's syndrome, was five months pregnant. She later gave birth in February 2018.
A year later, police said another client at the centre, a 33-year-old woman with intellectual disabilities, was raped.
The case was reported to police in August 2018 after her doctor discovered she was pregnant. She also gave birth.
Last month Betts-King was charged with sexually assaulting both women.
Betts-King was held without bond last week after a Fairfax County prosecutor outlined some of the allegations at a Wednesday hearing. Betts-King's attorney said his client denies the allegations.
Advocates say the case underscores a problem that has received less attention in the the sexual assault of the intellectually disabled.
Numbers produced by the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics for an NPR investigation last year found those with intellectual disabilities are sexually assaulted at seven times the rate of people without disabilities.
“It's an epidemic that most are unaware of,” said Leigh Ann Davis, director of criminal justice initiatives at the disability rights group the Arc.
The Fairfax County cases come as another in Phoenix has grabbed national attention. A woman with intellectual disabilities who was in a vegetative state gave birth to a child in December.
A nurse at the health-care facility where the woman was staying was charged in January with her sexual assault.
MVLE, in Springfield, Virginia, is privately run but contracts with Fairfax County to provide services. It served about 300 clients last year.
Medical records show the 29-year-old woman in Fairfax County became pregnant between 26-30 May 2017, according to a search warrant filed in Fairfax County court.
During that period, the woman was enrolled in a daily work program on the MVLE campus, and a support staff member was overseeing her. The search warrant does not say whether that was Betts-King.
Fairfax County prosecutor George Freeman IV told a judge at the bond hearing on Wednesday that the woman has the “mind of a 5-year-old”.
Mr Freeman said Betts-King told detectives after his arrest he engaged in consensual sex with the woman once in MVLE's offices and told her it had to be quick, so a supervisor didn't find them.
“He said she came on to him,” Mr Freeman told the judge.
Under Virginia law, a person with a significant intellectual disability is deemed incapable of consenting to sex.
The woman, who is of Korean descent, gave birth to a girl in February 2018, according to the search warrant. Detectives wrote in the court document that the child appeared to be biracial, having darker skin and curly black hair. Prosecutors said Betts-King is an immigrant from Sierra Leone who holds a green card
BY KHADIJAH YAKUBU
Credit; Washington post.
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