Convicted of Another Assault on Elderly Women
Shane Swindall Chambers, a 30-year-old Grand Rapids man with a criminal history of assault, is back in court, and while the date may be different, the crime remains the same. The alleged sexual assault of elderly women.
In March of 2004, Chambers was sentenced to eight to 20 years in prison for the rape of a then 63-year-old woman from Macomb County. According to police records, the victim woke up to find Chambers standing in her hallway wearing only his T-shirt and underwear. In her testimony she explained that he forced her into her bedroom and sat beside her on the bed, telling her that he “liked older women” and that he was high on ecstasy.
The victim says she chose not to struggle for fear that it would cause medical trouble related to her blood clot, but that she “talked and talked” the entire time. She said that he wasn’t violent but that the incident lasted for 4 hours. Chambers finally went to sleep in her bed and she slipped out and called police from a neighbor’s house.
Police found Chambers still asleep in her bed. He was arrested and convicted on charges of sexual assault. He served just over 8 years of his sentence and was paroled on June 19, 2012. He was still on parole when the incident occurred again.
In the Kent County Circuit Court last month, Judge George Buth presided over a trial in which the victim of most recent assault recounted her experience for the jury. The 77-year-old woman tells of how she woke up on her couch at about 1 am to a man brutally beating her. He punched her repeatedly until she passed out. When she awoke, her underwear had been removed and she was aware of pain in her genital area. Also, her purse was missing. Hospital staff later confirmed the rape.
Chambers bought drugs with stolen credit cards
Chambers was found with the victim’s credit cards when he was arrested the next day. The Michigan rapist allegedly used the credit cards to buy crack cocaine from assorted crack houses in Grand Rapids. The victimâs purse was discovered in one of the crack houses he had visited.
Chambers was charged as a repeat offender, this being his fourth felony charge. This is his second sexual assault charge and he also has a conviction for assault with a dangerous weapon from 2001 on his record.
The jury deliberated for 3 ½ hours, before finding Chambers guilty of first-degree criminal-sexual conduct, home invasion and assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder. He faces a maximum of life in prison at his upcoming sentencing.