A Manhattan jury convicted William Hathaway of third-degree rape in April 2025 after finding he assaulted Pamela Adelgren at his West Village apartment. A federal civil suit Adelgren has since brought seeks damages over the assault. The New York Post reported that she views Hathaway’s sentence of probation rather than prison as a failure of the justice system.
Adelgren, now a 29-year-old aspiring fashion designer, and Hathaway met on Tinder in February 2020, according to the New York Post. Per prosecutors, the two went on a date at Soho House before returning to Hathaway's apartment in the West Village, where a sexual encounter began consensually. Prosecutors said Adelgren asked Hathaway to stop at least five times, and the Manhattan District Attorney's office said Hathaway instead pushed her into his bed and raped her.
A Manhattan jury found Hathaway guilty of third-degree rape in April 2025. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the verdict sent an unambiguous message about consent. “This conviction makes clear that initial consent is not a blank check for rape. This survivor clearly said stop again and again,” Bragg said, according to the Manhattan DA's office.
Probation Instead of Prison Sparks Outrage
Prosecutors had pushed for the maximum sentence of four years in prison, the Post's report notes. Instead, Supreme Court Justice Josh Hanshaft sentenced Hathaway, now 34 and living in Florida, to ten years of probation and ordered him to register as a sex offender, rather than sending him to prison, per the same account. Hathaway, originally from Connecticut, is now living in Florida.
What probation data can tell us
Available statewide data do not show how often people convicted of rape in Manhattan receive probation rather than prison. According to the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, 56% of adults sentenced to probation in New York City in 2023 had felony convictions, but the report does not break that figure down by offense.
Adelgren called the sentence a “slap in the face,” and told the outlet, “it's just hard to trust in the justice system now.” She said the lack of jail time compounded the harm she had already suffered, and that she still lives in fear. “I still live in fear,” she said.
Survivor Turns to Federal Court
Now living in North Carolina and working as a furniture-upholstery sewist while she plans to begin a new job making dancewear, Adelgren has filed a federal civil suit against William Knapp Hathaway IV. She is seeking damages for battery, assault and emotional distress, along with a restraining order against him, according to the Post's reporting.
Adelgren said her life was forever changed by the assault, and that she hopes the civil suit will hold Hathaway accountable while encouraging other survivors to come forward and seek justice. She added that she hopes the case brings her closure and helps her regain a sense of control. Hathaway could not be reached for comment, the outlet reported.
A Wider Debate Over New York's Rape Laws
The case lands amid broader scrutiny of how New York law handles consent. City & State New York reports that state leaders are facing pressure to close what's been called the “voluntary intoxication loophole” amid an alleged gang-rape case at Cornell University. The article describes third-degree rape in terms of forced sex with someone who clearly expresses a lack of consent and discusses incapacity under the second-degree rape definition in the statute published by the New York State Senate.
