The man charged with raping an Everett High student two years ago during a weekend party – a young woman who was found unconscious on a driveway in Everett and barely clinging to life – has admitted his guilt this week.
Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Everett Chief of Police Steven Mazzie announced Tuesday that Sami Sherif, now 21, of Everett pleaded guilty to one count of rape in Middlesex Superior Court on Friday, September 29.
Judge John Lu sentenced the Sherif to not less than two years and nine months and not more than three and one half years in state prison.
The case was one that shocked the community at the time, and caused a great deal of concern in the School Department. Supt. Fred Foresteire published an open letter in the Independent at the time reassuring everyone that the school climate was sound.
On Saturday, March 7, 2015 at approximately 6:30 a.m. a resident on Appleton Street left her home to head to work. When she got to her parked car in her driveway, she saw a motionless teenager in the driveway with her pants pulled down. The girl was frothing from the mouth and there was blood on her and on the driveway. The teenager was rushed to Massachusetts General Hospital where doctors performed CPR on her for hours. She was unconscious and her core body temperature was 77 degrees. She had no brain activity and was suffering from hypothermia. The teenager had a 237 mg/dl blood alcohol level at 7 a.m. She was in a coma and was given a 30 percent chance of survival.
Investigators learned that the young woman had been at an under-aged drinking party on Waters Street in Everett the evening before. The Police had responded and broken up the event at approximately midnight. She was last seen leaving the party with the defendant. The temperature that evening was 18 degrees with a wind-chill factor of six to eight degrees.
The defendant returned alone to the Waters Street house and bragged to a few witnesses that he had had sexual intercourse with the victim. While the teenager was in a coma investigators located and interviewed several party-goers including the defendant.
The defendant spoke to the investigators and initially denied any sexual contact with the teenager, but eventually claimed they had consensual sex outside in the driveway where she was found lying. He told the police that he was doing her a favor by walking her home and that everyone had left her. He acknowledged that she was highly intoxicated and claimed he knew she wanted to have sex with him because of the way she looked at him. After the sexual intercourse, he claimed that he could not lift her or carry her anymore so he left her there.
Forensics evidence from the sexual assault kit performed on the victim linked the defendant to the sexual assault of her and he was arrested on March 27, 2015.
This case was investigated by the Everett Police Department and Massachusetts State Police assigned to the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office and in conjunction with the Massachusetts State Police Crime Laboratory.
The prosecutors assigned to this case were Assistant District Attorney Beth Dunigan and Assistant District Attorney Jessica Langsam. The Victim Witness Advocate is Kristen Chamberlain.