Supervisor at Dorchester day program raped deaf, disabled woman, lawsuit alleges

A supervisor at a Dorchester day program for people with disabilities is alleged to have coerced a 26-year-old deaf and disabled woman into a bathroom and raped her, The Boston Globe reported Monday.

The woman’s mother has filed a negligence lawsuit against Strides Day Habilitation Program on Beach Street alleging the rape, which the lawsuit says happened in 2018.

The Globe reported that the woman’s disabilities stopped her from being able to call for help while she was being attacked. She then waited a day before confiding in another staff member.

According to the lawsuit, the Globe reported, the Department of Developmental Services launched an investigation into the assault on Sept. 6, 2018. The department closed the investigation three months later after finding that the allegation was substantiated.

The victim, who is deaf and suffers from developmental, emotional, and mental disabilities, was “legally incapacitated” and unable to consent to sexual intercourse, the suit said, according to The Globe.

The woman’s mother is suing the supervisor accused of rape and WORK Inc., the company that runs Strides Day Habilitation Program.

The suit alleges assault and battery, gender and disability discrimination, gross negligence, and significant mental, emotional, and physical harm, The Globe reported, and demands a jury trial and $1 million in damages.

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