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Ex-ferry captain freed after truth emerges in woman's assault story
Thursday, June 8, 2000
By TRACY JOHNSON
After spending nearly two months in jail, a former Washington State Ferries captain was allowed to go home yesterday after prosecutors concluded that a woman's accusations of rape and torture were grossly exaggerated.
Attorneys for Hank Joseph Rapoza say the attack never happened.
Either way, King County prosecutors say they won't try to prosecute Rapoza because the woman, a 32-year-old prostitute, destroyed her credibility.
"It's a disappointment that she would lie to us," Deputy Prosecutor Scott O'Toole said.
Rapoza pleaded not guilty yesterday to new charges that he patronized a prostitute and possessed cocaine, which police said they found in his Seattle home.
Prosecutors dropped charges of first-degree rape and first-degree assault, and King County Superior Court Judge Michael Spearman released the 40-year-old Seattle man.
His trial on the new charges is set for July 5. If convicted, he faces up to 90 days in jail on each count, defense attorneys said.
In April, the woman told police a man she picked up slashed her with a knife, tortured and raped her. Police recently discovered the woman's wounds were from a medical procedure, O'Toole said.
He said the woman still maintains she was raped but now admits she invented a knife attack and showed police her wounds because she didn't think anyone would believe her.
Prosecutors don't plan to file any criminal charges against her, and a spokesman for the prosecutor's office declined to discuss that decision.
Rapoza's attorney, John Henry Browne, was angry that it took so long to uncover the truth. "An innocent person has been charged with a crime, and his reputation has been hurt," Browne said. "I think an apology is definitely in order."
Washington State Ferries put Rapoza on unpaid leave when the rape allegation came to light in April. Browne said his client will try to get his job back, though ferry officials have said that's unlikely while the drug-possession charge is pending.
P-I reporter Tracy Johnson can be reached at 206-467-5942 or tracyjohnson@seattle-pi.com
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