The exotic dancer who accused two Philadelphia cops of raping her said that despite their guilty pleas to lesser charges yesterday, she believes they still laugh about what happened.
But when James Fallon, 33, and Timothy Carre, 29, finally admitted their guilt to the judge yesterday, they wept.The rape charges against the pair were dropped as part of a deal in which they pleaded guilty to reduced charges of misdemeanor indecent assault, simple assault and official oppression. They were sentenced to four years’ probation.
“We believe that this is a good result, based on all the circumstances of the case,” said Assistant District Attorney Christopher Mallios. “I’m not sure we could have proven all the elements of rape.”
Mallios said the weaknesses in the case included inconsistencies in the victim’s statements about the incident and her admission to taking illegal drugs that night.
He said he was happy with the plea because it accomplished two crucial tasks: Holding the ex-cops accountable for inappropriate sexual conduct while on duty and prohibiting them from ever working again as Philly cops.
The deal was struck by noon yesterday, after a morning of flurried activity inside and outside the courtroom. The defendants and attorneys, who had finished selecting a jury in the case Thursday, met in several closed-door sessions yesterday to hash out the details.
Both married, the officers were assigned to the 15th Police District, with headquarters at Harbison Avenue and Levick Street.
Although Mallios said the victim had agreed to withdraw rape charges, she repeated in court that the officers had raped her.
“I’d like for you to know that they did rape me,” she told Common Pleas Judge Albert Snite. “They took my life away. It was against my will. It was never consensual.”
The victim, who sobbed throughout yesterday’s hearing, also told Snite that she believed the cops were still laughing about what had happened.
Mallios said the officers had forced the woman , a dancer at the nightclub Day Dreams in the Northeast – into their patrol car at a 7-Eleven parking lot, drove her to an empty lot near Aramingo Avenue and Interstate 95, then touched her on her vagina and breasts. They also forced her to touch their penises.
The pair have maintained that the sex was consensual.
Fallon’s attorney, Fortunato Perri Jr., said he was satisfied that the D.A.’s office had evaluated the case fairly in the end.
The cops “know that they made poor decisions that night,” but it was not rape, Perri said.
“As we said all along, this is not a case of forcible sex,” he said. ” . . . The D.A. withdrew the rape charge. That should be the end of that story.”
Carre’s lawyer, C.P. Mirarchi III, said his client was relieved to put an end to the case.
“He’s thankful it’s over. He’s ready to move on with his life,” Mirarchi said.
“You saw him cry in the courtroom,” he said. “He does know he acted inappropriately. He still maintains it was consensual, but he’s going to kick himself in the a- – everyday because he knows he acted inappropriately as a police officer.” *