John Henry Agee pled guilty on Sunday to the charges of rape and object sexual penetration of a former University Law student.
The victim, whose name has not been disclosed to the public, was a first-year Law student at the time of the attack, Charlottesville Commonwealth's Attorney Elizabeth Killeen said.
The attack occurred approximately 1 a.m. Sept. 3, 2005, after the victim had attended a party for Law students on Thompson Road, Killeen said.
The woman lived in Jefferson Ridge Apartments and was not able to find her wallet to pay for a cab from the party, so she decided to walk home, Killeen said.
While walking down Jefferson Park Avenue near Wayside Chicken, the victim soon became aware of a person behind her, Killeen said. The woman took her cell phone out and began to dial 911 when she felt the presence of her attacker uncomfortably close behind; however, she did not finish the call after the male kindly engaged her in conversation, asking her if she would be able to get home.
The woman then turned away from the man, onto Sunset Avenue, which was a direct route to her apartment complex, Killeen said.
Shortly after turning, the male who had spoken to her earlier grabbed her from behind and dragged her off the road onto the Rivanna Wilderness Trail, which crosses the Sunset Avenue path, Killeen added.
"She physically [resisted] at first, and she [kicked] him in his anatomy," Killeen said.
The victim was able to get away, but the man soon caught up with her and dragged her back to the original location.
Killeen said the woman then tried bargaining with the man, speaking about her religion and her boyfriend, to no avail.
The victim pretended to be unconscious while the male penetrated her, Killeen said.
Killeen explained the man never ejaculated in the victim, but two hairs consistent with pubic hairs were discovered later during a rape examination.
After the examination was conducted, the victim was taken to a police lineup to identify her attacker. The initial suspect was a man picked up by police who had been in the area shortly after the time of the attack and who matched the original description that the victim provided when she called 911 to report the incident, Killeen said.
After hearing the voice of the suspect, the victim identified Christopher Matthew as her attacker, but he was later released when the DNA tests exonerated, Killeen said.
The DNA was run through the Virginia DNA databank, and Agee, who was in the system for an aggravated assault case in 1998, came up as a match, according to Ric Barrick, director of communications for the City of Charlottesville.
Agee was then charged with rape, object sexual penetration, abduction and attempted sodomy. His trial was set to go to court this past Tuesday, but Agee entered into a plea agreement with the Commonwealth on Sunday. He pled guilty to rape and object sexual penetration, and the courts then dismissed the other two charges, Killeen said.
The maximum punishment for rape and object sexual penetration in the Commonwealth of Virginia is life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Agee will return to court in January for sentencing, according to Killeen.
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