Man sentenced in Fall River Superior Court for crime against minor after Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn’s Untested Rape Kit Initiative

Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn’s Untested Rape Kit Initiative has resulted in a conviction this week in Fall River Superior Court connected to an incident from more than two decades ago.

According to the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office, Patrick Avila of Attleboro was indicted by a Bristol County Grand Jury on a charge of rape of a child with force in connection to the rape of a 13-year-old girl in Fairhaven in October of 2001.

Avila, who was initially charged in Juvenile Court due to his age at the time of the crime, had his case transferred to adult court by a Juvenile Court Judge after a Transfer Hearing was held in September of 2022. Since that time, the grand jury indicted him. He was arraigned in Fall River Superior Court in December of 2022 and posted $10,000 cash bail.

On October 26, 2001, the victim went to a school dance where she later met up with a 17-year-old named Brandon St. Don, who was known to her. At some point during the evening, the victim left the dance with St. Don and went to a location where he provided her with alcoholic mixed drinks. After drinking this drink, she became dizzy and felt like passing out. St. Don then took her to a friend’s home on Delano Street, telling her he was taking her to “a safe place.” They eventually arrived at his friend’s house, at which point he dragged her into a car where she blacked out. While she was unconscious in the car, a witness observed St. Don inside the vehicle raping the victim, who was now stripped naked. The witness was upset upon seeing St. Don with the victim, whom he knew to be a child. Upon seeing this, the witness pulled St. Don off of the victim and punched him and forced St. Don to leave the property. Hearing this commotion caused the victim to regain consciousness. When she did, the victim realized that she was cold and naked. The witness gave the victim clothes and helped her to his basement where he allowed her to sleep. Patrick Avila was also present when the victim was discovered naked in the car with St. Don and when she was assisted by the witness into the house.

Based upon witness statements and other evidence, St. Don was charged at the time with the girl’s rape. He was later convicted and served a state prison sentence. Although the victim did submit to a rape kit following the incident, that kit was one of several thousand from throughout the state that was never fully tested by the state lab.

As part of DA Quinn’s Untested Rape Kit initiative, the testing revealed that Avila’s DNA (i.e. sperm cells) was found on the oral swabs from the rape kit. The victim has indicated that although she knew who Avila was at that time, she did not have any relationship with him, has no memory of seeing him that night, and never consented to any sexual contact with Avila.

On Monday, according to the court clerk, Avila pled guilty to a lesser charge of Indecent Assault & Battery on a Child Under 14 and was sentenced to 2 years probation with stipulations including having to register as a sex offender.