FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NEWS RELEASE
April 28, 2011
For More Information, contact:
Luther Strange
Joy Patterson (334) 242-7491
Alabama Attorney General
Suzanne Webb (334) 242-7351
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AG STRANGE ANNOUNCES COLD CASE PROSECUTION FOR
SEX CRIMES, OTHER OFFENSES IN 2006 IN CALHOUN COUNTY
(MONTGOMERY)–Attorney General Luther Strange announced that an
arraignment hearing that had been set for today was waived and prosecution is
proceeding against a defendant charged with the kidnapping, rape, sodomy and
robbery of a woman who was the victim of a violent attack in Calhoun County in 2006.
Patrick O’Neal Warren, 35, of Birmingham, entered a plea of not guilty. The charges
against him are the result of an investigation by the Attorney General’s Cold Case Unit.
Attorney General Strange’s Office presented information to a Calhoun County
grand jury resulting in Warren’s indictment in February 2011. He remains
incarcerated in the Calhoun County Jail on a bond totaling $100,000.
Specifically, the indictment charges Warren with the following crimes against a
woman who was attacked on April 28, 2006: one count of first-degree kidnapping with
intent to commit rape, sodomy and robbery; one count of first-degree rape, one count
of first-degree sodomy; one count of first-degree robbery in which a knife was used to
steal the victim’s vehicle. The indictment identifies Warren as being also known as
Patrick O’Neal, Phillip Patrick and Patrick Warner.
No further information about the investigation or about Warren’s alleged crimes
other than that stated in the indictment may be released at this time.
If convicted, Warren faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment for each of
the charges of rape, sodomy and kidnapping, which are class A felonies, and up to 20
years for the charge of robbery, which is a class B felony. Warren already is subject to
provisions of the community notification law regarding sex offenders due to his
pleading guilty to first-degree rape in 2001 in Jefferson County.
The Attorney General’s Cold Case Unit is a project conducted in partnership
with the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, to investigate violent sexual crimes
that previously had been closed due to lack of investigative leads. This program is
funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. Valuable assistance was
provided in the Warren case by the Anniston and Birmingham police departments.
*An indictment is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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501 Washington Avenue Montgomery, AL 36104 (334) 242-7300
www.ago.state.al.us
