The 4 suspects, not UMass students, are being arraigned in Eastern Hampshire District Court in Belchertown.
Update, 2:55 p.m.: A visibly upset Judge Mary Hurley has refused any bail agreements for the four suspects.
“All the years on the bench I have never heard such an egregious set of facts. I will not approve of any agreement,” said Hurley, went on to give the lawyers a short period of time to work things out.
Hurley also refused defense lawyer Terrance Dunphy’s request for a continuance on matter of bail for his client Justin King.
BELCHERTOWN — Arraignments are ongoing Monday afternoon for four Pittsfield teens accused of raping an 18-year-old female University of Massachusetts student in her on-campus dormitory earlier this month.
Documents filed in Eastern Hampshire District Court identify the four suspects as Adam Liccardi, 18; Caleb Womack, 17; Emmanuel Toffee Bile, 18; and Justin A. King, 18.
Liccardi was charged with four counts of rape, and the three others were each charged with three counts of rape, according to court documents.
A UMass press release states the four are not UMass students. A law enforcement official confirmed that the men were arrested Friday in Pittsfield.
The attack is alleged to have occurred in the victim’s residence hall room in the early morning hours of Oct. 13.
Assistant Northwestern District Attorney Jennifer Suhl told Judge Mary Hurley that one of the four suspects knew the victim a little bit and that they came to visit her on campus at about 12:30 a.m.
Both the suspects and the victim consumed a large amount of vodka inside the victim’s dorm room. The victim cried during the attack and used the word “no,” Suhl said.
Suhl, who is the chief of the Northwestern District Attorney’s Domestic Violence Sexual Assault unit, said the victim told investigators that she did not want the four to come to the campus. She said somebody else let them in to her resident hall, however, and the victim was not in her room when they got there.
When the victim returned to her room, however, the victim said it was OK for them to be there, Suhl said.
Suhl said the suspects left the victim’s room at about 4:30 a.m.
Both Suhl and lawyers for the defendants told Hurley that they agree upon a recommendation that all four suspects be held in lieu of $2,500 cash bail or $25,000 surety.
Hurley said, however, she wanted to further review the arrest reports before setting bail. The court will reconvene at 2:15 p.m.
Horvath, speaking at an early afternoon press conference at the UMass police station, said investigators are still attempting to determine who signed the suspects into the residence hall. It was not the victim or the victim’s roommate, he said.
The incident, Horvath said, was not reported to police until 11 p.m. on Oct. 14. Horvath attributed the university’s lag in reporting that the alleged sexual assault had occurred out of consideration to the needs of the victim.
A campus-wide emergency alert was not issued because police determined that nobody else was in danger, he said.
Subbaswamy and Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan also spoke at the press conference.
In a statement, UMass-Amherst Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy said, “Maintaining a safe learning and living community is of the upmost importance to our campus. We will not tolerate this violent behavior. The victim and her family are receiving support from our campus resources. I know that I speak on behalf of our university community when I say that they are all in our thoughts during this difficult time.”
UMass-Amherst Police Chief John Horvath said that upon notification of the crime, his department began an immediate investigation and determined that the general campus community was not in danger. The Pittsfield men were arrested by a team made up of members of the UMass-Amherst Police, Pittsfield Police and the Massachusetts State Police Detectives Unit assigned to the Berkshire County District Attorney’s Office.
Horvath said, “The safety of our students is paramount. Following the incident, we communicated with security personnel and residence hall staff to reiterate current security procedures. In addition, while campus security measures have generally proved effective in the past, the university will conduct a comprehensive review of security in our residence halls. The campus is providing support to the victim and her family through our well-established resources on campus. In addition, we will redouble our efforts to educate all members of our community about protecting their safety.”
This is a developing story and will be updated as our reporting continues
Reporters Conor Berry, Fred Contrada, George Graham and Jim Russell contributed to this story