More than a decade after a young woman reported being raped at a downtown Cleveland bar, prosecutors say forensic DNA testing has finally put a name to the genetic profile that sat in a cold-case file for years.
Chaning Biaggio Rhodes, 35, was arrested on April 8 after investigators say a DNA test linked him to a 2013 sexual assault at a bar in the city’s downtown core. He is charged with two felony counts of rape and is scheduled for a pretrial hearing on April 27. A trial is currently set for July 13.
At the time of the alleged attack, the victim was 24. She went to a nearby hospital for treatment, where medical staff collected a sexual-assault kit that would later provide the DNA profile at the center of the case.
How Prosecutors Closed The Loop
The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office has been leaning on its G.O.L.D. unit, short for Genetic Operations Linking DNA, to chase leads in long-dormant sexual assault cases. The unit runs genealogical searches, follows up on untested or cold sexual-assault kits, and, in some instances, indicts unknown DNA profiles as “John Doe” to keep the statute of limitations from running out. It has also contracted with genealogical testing companies to generate investigative leads, according to the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office.
Case Details And Lab Match
According to WOIO, prosecutors say the assault happened on November 24, 2013, when the victim, who was tailgating before a Cleveland Browns game, became separated from her friends and was sexually assaulted in a back room of a downtown bar.
Investigators developed a DNA profile from the sexual-assault kit, but it initially produced no hits in CODIS, the national DNA database. To keep the case alive, prosecutors indicted the unknown genetic profile in 2021 as “John Doe #177,” which preserved the window for prosecution.
Authorities later obtained a DNA sample from Rhodes. Testing at the Cuyahoga County Regional Forensic Science Laboratory confirmed a match between his DNA and the profile from the victim’s kit, which prosecutors say led to his arrest earlier this month.
Legal Questions Ahead
Defense attorneys sometimes attack long delays before indictment by arguing that the gap has caused “actual prejudice,” such as missing witnesses or lost evidence. Under Ohio law, defendants must first show that kind of concrete prejudice before the state has to explain why it waited to bring charges.
That two-step, burden-shifting framework has driven decisions in cases like State v. Jones, and similar arguments could surface as this case moves toward the courtroom.
Support And Next Steps
Advocates emphasize that survivors of sexual violence can seek medical care and support immediately after an assault, whether or not they choose to report to law enforcement. The Cleveland Rape Crisis Center offers a hotline and counseling services for people affected by sexual violence.
The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s victim-witness unit can also help survivors and their families navigate the criminal justice process, including updates on court dates and what to expect as the case progresses toward the April 27 pretrial hearing.
