Former MBTA Police Officer Shawn McCarthy as he was found guilty of sexual assault on Friday, March 15, 2024.
A former MBTA Transit Police officer was convicted of three counts of rape on Friday for sexually assaulting two women while he was on duty in July 2012.
Shawn McCarthy, 50, raped the two women after taking them from a joyride in his cruiser from near the Aquarium T station to an area near the Museum of Science, officials said.
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"This officer abused his position, violated his department protocols, and, worst of all by far, subjected two young women to sexual assaults that went unacted upon for many years," Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden said in a statement. "But thanks to the victims ultimately coming forward, and the diligent work of investigators, justice in this case was sought and, with today’s verdict, delivered."
Resources for victims of sexual assault are available through the National Sexual Violence Resources Center and the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-4673, and Massachusetts provides this list of statewide and resources for sexual assault survivors.
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McCarthy, who moved from Wilmington to Maine while the case was ongoing, broke into tears as the verdict was delivered Friday. He is due for sentencing on Wednesday.
Prosecutors said the victims, then in their early 20s, were out drinking in Boston when they encountered McCarthy outside the Aquarium MBTA station. He allegedly offered the two women "a joyride" in his marked police cruiser and drove them around the area with blue lights flashing.
After stopping at a vacant lot so the women could urinate, prosecutors said McCarthy told them he wouldn't take them back downtown unless he got something out of it. The women said they feared getting in trouble and had no choice but to submit as he sexually assaulted them. He then drove them back to the area where they had met and warned them not to tell anyone.
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One of the victims disclosed the assault soon afterward to a relative. She again had to divulge the information while answering required questions for a law enforcement job in another community in 2019.
Prosecutors said McCarthy admitted that he had two women in the cruiser on the night in question but denied the sexual assaults ever took place. He was placed on administrative leave in 2019 and resigned soon afterward.
MBTA Transit Police Chief Kenneth Green released the following statement on the situation:
"First and foremost, we must acknowledge the survivors in this horrific incident. We are in total admiration at the courage and bravery they displayed throughout this ordeal. We must also acknowledge Assistant District Attorney Ian Polumbaum whose experience, skills and abilities were brought to bear on behalf of the survivors and citizens of the Commonwealth to hold Shawn McCarthy accountable for his abhorrent, predatory and vile conduct. The jurors rendered a thoughtful and just verdict.
"We are committed to restoring the faith and trust of those we are sworn to serve and protect."
