‘Domestic terror’ gets 33 years for rape, robbery spree

Man agrees string of crimes sowed fear in neighborhood.

A Cleveland CLEVELAND — man who admitted to raping a 13-year-old girl and two women at gunpoint and shooting a man during a 2017 crime spree when he was 17 was sentenced Monday to more than three decades in prison.

Dale Reed Jr., 18, agreed with Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Kathleen Sutula that his string of crimes, carried out from February through May, sowed fear in the Lee-Harvard neighborhood where Reed operated.

Reed, a small-time weed dealer, lured three of his victims to a vacant house on East 147th Street to attack them. He broke into the bedroom of the young girl as she slept and raped her when she awoke, and shot the man as he pumped gas in separate incidents.

“You’re a domestic terror who just wreaked havoc on these people, right?” Sutula asked.

A handcuffed Reed replied, “I agree, your honor.”

Sutula sentenced Reed to 33 years in prison for the crimes he committed as a juvenile. Since Reed was 17 at the time, and because he used a gun and has previous criminal convictions in juvenile court for firearm offenses, his case was automatically moved to adult court.

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley said Reed is the latest example of a serial offender whose criminal career began as a young teenager and outgrew the abilities of the juvenile court.

“The people of Cleveland are much safer now that Dale Reed is behind bars,” O’Malley told cleveland.com Monday.

Reed began drinking and smoking marijuana when he was 12, took his first hit of ecstasy at 15, and moved on to acid, molly and and PCP when he was 16 and 17, Sutula said in court Monday. He was arrested several times by police in Shaker Heights for assault, aggravated robbery, obstructing official business and receiving stolen property, records show. He never served time behind bars.

Reed’s defense lawyer, James Hofelich, asked Sutula to impose a more lenient sentence, in part citing that Reed had not served any significant time as a juvenile.

Sutula called that argument “unique.”

“When I look at his record, I wonder what it is they do over at juvenile court?” Sutula said. “He’s been given one break after another and here you are saying to me in essence, ‘Well he’s always been given a break so lets give him one more break?’ No. No one gave these victims a break. This court’s not going to give him a break.”

Reed launched the crime spree for which he was sentenced Monday on Feb. 6, when he approached a 32-year-old man pumping gas at a station at the corner of Lee and Harvard avenues. Reed pulled a pistol and shot the man in the leg. He stole his wallet and cellphone.

Nine days later, Reed lured one of his marijuana customers into a vacant home to sell her drugs. Instead, Reed pulled a pistol, then raped the 20-year-old woman. When he was finished and started to leave, Reed forced the woman to lie on the ground and count to 60 before she left.