Statement from Tom Anderson, District Attorney, 12th Judicial Circuit

 

A few moments ago a Pike Co. Jury returned verdicts of GUILTY in two counts

of Rape 1st Degree and 1 count of Burglary 2nd against Andre Ellis of Troy. The case

involved the brutal attacks of two young ladies residing in the Hunter’s Mountain Trailer

Park on March 26th, 2012.

As District Attorney, I am proud of the efforts and job done by Assistant District

Attorneys, Scherryl Harrison and Chris Kaminski and the staff of the District Attorney’s

office.

I am especially proud and grateful for the response and effort put into this case by

the Troy Police Department, the detective division in its entirety and in particular, case

agents, Sergeant Brian McLendon and Lieutenant Lee Barnes. These officers spared no

effort in investigating, identifying and apprehending Andre Ellis.

Most importantly, I want to thank and praise the two victims and their families for

their patience and diligence in bringing this vicious criminal to justice. Those young

ladies, so brutally violated, came forward to report their attacks and stood strong

throughout the process to regain power and control from their attacker, Andre Ellis.

We, in the criminal justice system, need the victims of sexual assaults to report

these crimes and testify and so that we may make every effort to restore to them their

dignity and deter future crimes. Statistics are overwhelming that a tremendous number of

rape victims never tell anyone about their attack and even higher numbers never report it

to police.

 

The Bureau of Justice Statistics reports that the majority of rapes and sexual

assaults perpetrated against women and girls in the United States… were not reported

to the police. Only 36 percent of rapes, 34 percent of attempted rapes, and 26 percent of

sexual assaults were reported.

A sentencing date will be set by Judge Kelly in the near future. The District

Attorney’s office will be seeking a “Life, Without the Possibility of Parole” in the two

Rape cases and Life in the Burglary 2nd Case.