Judge slashes bail for accused Elwyn rapist

MEDIA COURTHOUSE >> Delaware County Common Pleas Court Judge Richard Cappelli significantly reduced bail Thursday for a former Elwyn employee accused of raping a woman with severe mental disabilities.

Johnson Nyema Porka, 59, of the 300 block of Poplar Street in Darby Borough, had been held on $500,000 cash bail since April, which was reduced Thursday to 10 percent of $50,000 with electronic home monitoring.

Porka was arrested last March by state police after a coworker allegedly caught him in the act of the assault inside the 38-year-old woman’s room and reported him to a supervisor.

Porka was working the overnight shift at Elwyn’s Smith Hall residence on March 5 and 6 when he allegedly entered the woman’s room and closed the door to prevent anyone seeing in from the hallway. The door was allegedly closed for about one hour between 11:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m.

The affidavit for Porka’s arrest indicates a fellow staffer there noticed the closed door and checked the room by entering through an adjoining door to another patient room. The witness said he saw Porka with his pants down “kneeling on top” of the woman, whose pajama bottoms were pulled down, and holding her naked legs in the air.

A separate civil complaint filed against Elwyn by the alleged victim’s father in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas indicates the coworker yelled out to Porka, who quickly left the room and apologized. Porka asked the witness not to report the incident and told him, “The devil made me do it,” the complaint states.

The alleged victim was taken to Riddle Memorial Hospital, where a forensic examination revealed evidence of sexual assault, including lacerations inside her vagina, according to the complaint.

Bail for Porka was originally set at $100,000 cash, but was later raised to $500,000 cash. Porka has been incarcerated since his arrest.

Defense attorney Kevin Wray argued in a habeas petition filed Monday that there is no evidence his client committed any crime aside from the sole witness and that he should be granted a bail reduction pending trial, set for May 8.

Pennsylvania’s “prompt trial” law, known as Rule 600, requires the state to bring a case to trial within 180 days of arrest or release the defendant on nominal bail. Certain days requested by the defense to prepare a case can be excluded from that timetable, however.

Wray argued that even counting excludable days in this case, Porka has been incarcerated for far more than the requisite 180 days to trigger a bail reduction. He asked for bail to be set below $100,000.

Assistant District Attorney Alan Borowsky disputed Wray’s calculation, arguing the actual non-excludable days came closer to 150 as of Thursday. He added that case law shows Rule 600 should not be treated as a mere calculation of days, but also involves factors like the danger a defendant might pose to the community and whether the commonwealth has exercised due diligence in bringing the case to trial.

Bail officer Charlene LaPreste told the judge that her office would be satisfied with $100,000 cash bail with electronic home monitoring. She also suggested certain other restrictions, including that Porka have no contact with the alleged victim or anyone suffering from physical limitations or mental disability.

Cappelli ordered Porka to comply with any conditions imposed by the bail office as a condition of the bail reduction. Borowsky raised concerns that Porka, a Liberian national, could pose a flight risk. Porka said he owns a passport but does not know where it is and was not ordered to turn it over.