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Shawn McClinton faces the possibility of life without parole after a jury found him guilty of kidnapping, aggravated rape, and three accounts of assault and battery, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office said. A judge will sentence him on Aug. 31.
The attack happened on Feb. 19, 2018, when McClinton and two other men spent the day traveling around the city with the victim. But after the others left, McClinton took the woman to a McDonald's on Washington Street. When she excused herself to the bathroom, police said McClinton barged in, assaulted her, and then dragged her into the men's bathroom. That's where he raped her, punched her repeatedly, and threatened to kill her, the prosecutor's office said.
The woman ran out of the bathroom wearing only a torn bra with McClinton chasing her. She was able to backtrack and lock herself in the men's bathroom until Boston police arrived, the DA's office said.
McClinton represented himself during the trial, which meant he got to question the woman on the witness stand. Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden called her brave and commended her for her composure.
“The survivor of this assault has displayed incredible courage and strength throughout the four years that this case has been pending and through the nearly 11 hours she spent on the witness stand being questioned by the man who violated her," Hayden said in a statement. "I am so proud of her and grateful to the team of prosecutors, victim witness advocates, support staff, and law enforcement partners who all worked to hold this serial sex offender accountable and to support the survivors he harmed."
McClinton gained national infamy in 2020 when the Massachusetts Bail Fund stepped up to pay his $15,000 bond while he waited for his trial for this attack. Police say he raped another woman at knifepoint while out of jail, Boston.com said. That case has not gone to trial.
He was convicted in 2007 of raping a woman in Bristol County, and raping abusing a child in 1994, according to the Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry.
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