19-year-old woman held on bail after ‘brutal’ assault on sister

A 19-year-old Dorchester woman has been ordered held on $1,000 bail after she was allegedly seen on surveillance camera assaulting her sister, including stomping and standing on her head, in December. 

Dream Gillenwater was arraigned Jan. 19. She is charged with one count of assault and battery and two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, which officials said in a statement were her “shod foot” and the “sidewalk.”

Boston police responded to 174 Ipswich St. in Boston on Dec. 8 after receiving a report of an unconscious person, a press release from the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office said. 

When officers arrived, they found the victim, 24, on the ground and out of breath, officials said. Gillenwater, who was also on the scene, was “verbally abusive” toward the officers and told them she and her sister had been out drinking. 

According to police, a witness saw the pair arguing at a bus stop before Gillenwater hit her sister on the back of her head as she attempted to walk away. The witness attempted to stop the altercation and called 911, officials said.

Video surveillance obtained from a nearby school showed the series of events described by the witness and revealed Gillenwater “stomping” on the victim’s head several times and “standing with both feet on the victim’s head,” police said. Gillenwater was also seen slamming her sister’s head against the sidewalk four times. 

In addition to holding Gillenwater on bail, a judge ordered her to stay away from her sister, refrain from alcohol and drug use, and be fitted with a GPS tracker device if released, police said. Gillenwater’s pre-trial hearing will be held Feb. 8.

“The brutality of this assault is evident from the facts, but that it was an attack on a sibling gives it an added dimension of tragedy,” Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden said in a statement. “It’s fortunate for the victim that the witness called 911 and police responded so quickly.”

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