BOONE COUNTY, Mo. — More than 23 years after a 17-year-old girl was raped in central Missouri, a man pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting her and was sentenced to 5 years.
Lonny Ray Caldwell's conviction was thanks to DNA evidence from the case. Caldwell's DNA matched a swab of evidence found on the victim, and that led to the suspect's conviction, according to a written statement from Missouri officials.
According to court documents, Caldwell denied being alone with the victim or having sex with her, but a witness saw him leaving the bedroom where the victim was, court records said.
The victim told investigators she saw Caldwell put white power in her drink. Later, the victim became sick and lightheaded and went to lie down in the bedroom.
"[The witness] entered the bedroom, right after Caldwell exited, and found the victim on the bed with her underwear partially down," the court records said. "[The witness] assisted the victim in getting her clothes on, and they left the residence."
Caldwell was 30 years old in April of 2001 when the sexual assault happened. Caldwell was 53 when he pleaded guilty in August of 2024.
"The victim told a relative she tried to stop Caldwell, but she was too intoxicated to fight him off," the court documents said.
Originally, Caldwell was facing a charge of forcible rape, which comes with a sentence that ranges from five years to life in prison. Later, that charge was changed to sexual assault, which is punishable by up to seven years in prison and a maximum fine of $5,000.
The DNA evidence was tested thanks to an effort from the Missouri Attorney General's Office to clear a backlog of sexual assault forensic evidence tests.
A team with Attorney General Andrew Bailey's Office sent away for testing evidence from the 2001 sexual assault on March 4, 2024. The results weren't available until two months later — four days before the case would've gone to trial.
According to a statement from Bailey's office, the final shipment of untested sexual assault forensic evidence kits was sent on March 22.
"So far, the cleared SAFE kit backlog has resulted in 1,175 CODIS uploads, 557 CODIS hits, four felony convictions and seven pending court cases set for trial or with warrants issued," the statement said. "This milestone would not have been reached without the effort and support of Missouri’s law enforcement and hospital partners."
