Cry Rape: The True Story of One Woman's Harrowing Quest for Justice

5. One on One

5 One on One It’s common knowledge that visually impaired people tend to have more highly developed other senses. Because they can’t rely on sight, they’re often better at processing other input—sounds, smells, sensations. In Patty’s case it wasn’t so much that her other senses were sharper as that she was more attuned to nonvisual cues, like the inflection of a person’s voice. For instance, on the day before the rape she had known, more clearly than a sighted person may have, that the Business Enterprise representatives with whom she met were frustrated and annoyed. Ostensibly they had the same goal—helping Patty straighten out her business woes—as Connie Kilmark, the financial counselor brought in for this meeting. But in terms of attitude, they were coming from different places, and Patty picked up on it. Likewise it didn’t take Patty long to realize that Detective Woodmansee was coming from a different place than the officer, sexual assault nurse, and police photographer she had met five days before. He arrived at her apartment as promised at 3 p.m. on September 9. Patty had gotten a cab ride home from her job at the coffee shop, after putting in a full day’s work. Misty and Patty’s brother Bobby were also present. Woodmansee introduced himself, asking Patty to call him “Tom.” She was struck by how tall he was, a towering presence compared with her five-feet-four-inch frame, and how young, although at age thirty-four he was only four years younger than herself. Woodmansee asked to talk with Patty in private, one on one. As her guests exited, the detective explained that he was going to ask some of the same questions as the other officer, only he would do it “better.” She 36 perceived him as arrogant, an impression that would not change over time. The detective asked Patty to escort him through the residence and identify the bedroom where the rape occurred. He said it wasn’t necessary that she come into the room—he understood this might be difficult—but she said it was okay, and followed him in. Right away Woodmansee noticed something strange. The closet Patty had allegedly been forced into was extremely full, with items protruding. He asked if the closet was in this condition the night of the assault and she said it was. Woodmansee saw the bloodied pillow, still on the bed. He peeked into Misty’s bedroom, a few feet across the hall from Patty’s. Then they returned to the front room to talk. Woodmansee ascertained that Patty and Misty had been living at the Fairmont Avenue duplex for three years. Patty and her boyfriend Mark had been dating off and on for a year and a half. The detective asked about Dominic. Patty had known him since that spring, when he dated her sister Brenda. They broke up after about three months, not amicably, and Misty and Dominic hooked up a month after that, in July. Brenda was “very bitter” that Dominic was now seeing her niece. Patty was also not thrilled with this relationship, because she knew that Dominic had genital herpes. Patty estimated that Dominic had been to her apartment five to ten times and had stayed overnight on several occasions. They had spoken only a handful of times, and Patty had never gotten close enough to discern his facial features, although he seemed about the same size and had the same color skin as her assailant. She knew he drank a lot of beer, because he sometimes left it in her refrigerator. She also told Woodmansee, “He gets jealous of Misty talking to men. He hates black men.” As Woodmansee requested, Patty had drawn up a list of suspects , with Misty’s help. It named a half dozen of Misty’s friends and acquaintances, including Dominic; his roommate David W., who went by the nickname “Slim”; and “Lonnie Alvord, eighteen years old.” While Patty had been careful not to share her suspicions with Misty, it was obvious that Dominic fit the physical description and had to be included. Even Dominic, in a conversation with Misty, agreed this should be done, to rule him out. One on One 37 • Before discussing the alleged assault, Woodmansee asked Patty for a detailed account of the week leading up to it, an...