Small Law Firms

Lawyer Charged In String Of Sexual Attacks On Women

From in-house to the big house? He's the suspect in as many as five attacks on women.

By  
on

Ra’Shaun Kelley (Photo via Avvo)

It’s not every day that an attorney who once worked in-house at J.P. Morgan and Credit Suisse is accused of being a “serial sex fiend” who “terrorized Manhattan women,” but here we are.

Ra’Shaun Kelley, a 2012 graduate of New York Law School who specializes in securities and commercial matters, was arrested last Friday and arraigned this weekend in a string of sexual attacks against women in New York City. The New York Post has additional details on the allegations that have been made against Kelley:

In the first attack, on Dec. 16, 2014, he allegedly forcibly kissed a 19-year-old woman he’d followed into her elevator on Roosevelt Drive in the East Village.

In the second, early the next morning, he allegedly grabbed a woman in her Harlem building, covering her mouth to smother her screams.

A month later, on Jan. 14, 2015, he allegedly followed a 31-year-old woman into her Lower East Side apartment, pulling her pants down before fleeing.

Grainy surveillance video obtained by cops from the three attacks show the suspect wearing a Yankees cap, police said.

And he is a suspect in two additional attacks police said Saturday — a Dec. 9, 2014 groping of a woman walking into her building, and a Dec. 28, 2014 sex assault of a 22-year-old woman in a stairwell, both in the East Village, police said.

Kelley was charged with three counts of first-degree sexual abuse and three counts of burglary in the second degree as a sexually motivated felony. His bail was set at $200,000 cash or bond, and he continues to deny the allegations. Here’s what Kelley’s lawyer, Christopher Carrion, had to say about the case against his client:

The prosecution’s case is circumstantial and full of holes — from grainy surveillance footage to ambiguous identifications to an overzealous detective seeking to make a career on smearing the reputation of a fine lawyer. There is no evidence whatsoever that my client committed any crimes and we look forward to fighting these charges and clearing his name.

Per the Post, Kelley once wrote the following about himself on Facebook: “Aggressive: making an all-out effort to win or succeed; competitive; boldly assertive and forward; pushy.” This isn’t exactly the type of thing you’d want prosecutors to see on your public profile if you’ve been charged with crimes like these.

Sponsored

Park Avenue lawyer led double life as serial sex fiend: cops [New York Post]
Manhattan Lawyer Charged With Sexual Attacks on Women [New York Law Journal]

Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

Sponsored

Topics

, , , , ,