A Citizen Hero, Hospital Staff, Police and DNA Stop a Predator

In a case right that could be out of the "CSI" series, a violent, predatory rapist could face up to life in prison after pleading guilty to raping two women in Seattle's Myrtle Edwards Park in August 2007.

The defendant, Angel Galvan-Hernandez, may not have been caught had it not been for the courageous actions of a real-life hero, a citizen who was walking in the park about 10 p.m. and stumbled upon the defendant's attack on one of the victims.  When he walked by a couple he thought might be in an amorous embrace, he noticed signs that something was amiss -- a dropped wallet and ATM card and sounds of a struggle.  When he looked further, he saw a woman being attacked on the rocky shoreline.  The hero stopped the attack and held the defendant while the victim ran to summon police.

While this victim was being treated at Harborview Medical Center, alert medical staff recognized the description of the perpetrator as being very similar to an attack on another woman in the area five days before.  In that case, the suspect had not been caught.  Seattle Police detectives were able to link Hernandez to the earlier rape, and DNA evidence from that crime proved that the defendant was the perpetrator (to a degree of discrimination that put the chances of someone else with that DNA profile at one in four quadrillion).

Last month, the defendant pleaded guilty as charged to two counts of Rape in the First Degree.  He now faces a minimum sentence range of 15 to 20 years in prison, and could receive a maximum sentence of up to life in prison when sentenced on February 6.

The outcome in this case was possible because of the actions of a real-life hero, a man who showed the courage to get involved and come to the rescue of a complete stranger who needed help.  The Seattle Police Department and Harborview Medical Center also deserve great credit for a thorough investigation and for linking this defendant's DNA to the attack that occurred five days earlier.  To read more, click this link.

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