A DuPage County homeless man has been sentenced to a term of 66 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections for a 2018 sexual assault incident near the Illinois Prairie Path. The State's Attorney's office, in an announcement, described the conviction of Robert Davison, who on January 25, 2024, was found guilty of twelve counts of Aggravated Criminal Sexual Assault and one count of Unlawful Restraint following a three-day trial.
Authorities recalled that the attack occurred in the early hours of May 18, 2018, when a woman's screams near a PADS Shelter in Wheaton brought the police to a shocking scene. Covered in dirt and bearing scratches and cuts, the victim had been dragged by her hair into a wooded area and sexually assaulted after she rebuffed Davison's demands for sex. Fleeing after the assault, Davison was arrested on May 20 without incident, thanks to the Wheaton Police Department's investigation. H remained in custody on a $750,000 bond since his capture.
The State's Attorney's office statement highlighted the additional aggravating evidence presented at the sentencing hearing, revealing that Davison had also sexually assaulted another homeless woman in Oak Park some forty-three days before the Prairie Path crime. "Sexual assaults are degrading and among the most invasive crimes a victim can be forced to endure," stated DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin. "Physically and emotionally, the damage caused by a sex crime can fester, leaving victims to suffer not only at the time of the assault but possibly for years to come."
The State's Attorney applauded the collaborative efforts of the Wheaton and Oak Park Police Departments, as well as the assistant state's attorneys, for their "exceptional efforts" in securing Davison's conviction. Robert Davison, born on September 16, 1979, faced justice before Judge Margaret O’Connell and will be required to serve at least 85% of his sentence before being eligible for parole.
