By The Vanguard Staff
LOS ANGELES, CA – After deliberating about one and a half days, a jury here last week found a former Los Angeles police officer guilty of forcible rape, and he will be sentenced Aug. 10, according to a statement released by Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón.
William Rodriguez, added the DA, raped the woman while off duty in 2015, and was not found guilty of rape of a second victim.
“Today, justice has been served for one of the victims of a heinous crime committed by a police officer who was entrusted with protecting and serving our community,” Gascón said.
He added, “While we are disappointed that the defendant was not found guilty on the count of rape on a second victim, we want to commend the bravery of both victims who came forward to report these crimes. We understand that coming forward and testifying in court is not easy, and we appreciate their courage in doing so.”
The chief prosecutor noted, “We want to assure the community that we will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that justice is served for all victims of sexual assault and abuse. We also want to acknowledge the hard work of the investigators and prosecutors who worked on this case.”