Former Lawrence Resident Sentenced for 1997 Rape

Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson announced on Friday, July 25 Robert E. Grey, 41, formerly of Lawrence was sentenced for his conviction by a jury on May 9 of this year for the 1997 rape of a then University of Kansas student.  The case was originally tried in 2009, but was reversed by the Kansas Court of Appeals in 2012.

The 1997 cold case originally had new life breathed into it in 2007 when a fingerprint hit was made from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation’s Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) from a print left on the victim’s car.  With information stemming from this match, a search warrant was executed that allowed the Lawrence Police Department to obtain DNA from Grey.  When DNA from Grey was compared to DNA obtained from the rape kit, a match was made.

The Honorable Michael J. Malone sentenced Grey to 300 months in the custody of the Kansas Department of Corrections and designated the crime was committed with a firearm.  When he is released from prison, he will report for 36 months of post release supervision and will be required to register as a sex offender for his entire lifetime. 

The case was investigated by the Lawrence Police Department and it was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Eve Kemple and Assistant District Attorney Mark Simpson.

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