Dundalk man indicted in rape of patient in hospital

An Anne Arundel County grand jury indicted a rape suspect from Dundalk on Friday, nearly a month after he was accused of sexually assaulting a “lethargic” patient at the Baltimore Washington Medical Center, court records show.

Damien Taylor, 40, will be charged in circuit court with the same crimes he was accused of committing at the time of his arrest: second-degree rape, thirdand fourth-degree sex offenses, and second-degree assault, according to the Maryland Judiciary.

As of Monday, a defense attorney has not been assigned to Taylor’s case.

Taylor was arrested Feb. 26 after police confronted him with a 28-year-old patient in a private, curtained-off area. When questioned, Taylor claimed to have known the victim but identified her by the wrong name “multiple times,” according to charging documents.

The Capital does not identify victims of sexual assault.

Police wrote that an ambulance transported the patient to the Glen Burnie hospital earlier in the evening after she had a “negative reaction” to her prescribed medication. Officials described her as “very lethargic” and “confused” and medical personnel provided her with a wheelchair while she awaited treatment.

During that time, according to charging documents, Taylor approached her and began talking to her, soon wheeling her off to the private area.

The woman told law enforcement she did not consent to having sex with Taylor and authorities noted surveillance footage “corroborated the victim’s telling of events,” according to charging documents.

Police did not explain why Taylor was at the hospital that day, though officials within the department and at Baltimore Washington Medical Center confirmed that he was not a staff member.

In a statement, spokesperson Lisa Broadhead said the Baltimore Washington Medical Center has a “robust security presence,” including county police officers across its campus. She said the hospital “takes the safety and security of our patients, families, and staff extremely seriously,” adding that it was collaborating with county police on their investigation.

At the time of his arrest, Taylor was serving six months of unsupervised probation, according to court records. He had been convicted in October of fourth-degree burglary and was released after Baltimore County District Judge Phillip Tirabassi issued a probation before judgment ruling.

A status conference is scheduled in Taylor’s case for May 24.