Crime & Safety
Marblehead Man Convicted In UMass Rape Case
Dominic Ballard, 25, of Marblehead, was sentenced to three to five years instate prison for the rape of a 19-year-old UMass student in 2017.
MARBLEHEAD, MA — A Hampshire Superior Court judge sentenced a 25-year-old Marblehead man to three to five years in state prison Friday following his conviction on a rape charge. Earlier in the day a jury had found Dominic Ballard guilty of raping a student at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst in October 2017. Ballard was found not guilty on a second rape charge involving the same woman.
Prosecutors had wanted a sentence of 60 to 90 months, while defense attorneys argued for a sentence of 18 to 24 months. Ballard will also have to register with the state as a sex offender, according to the Daily Hampshire Gazette. Ballard was a 23-year-old senior at UMass when he raped the 19-year-old sophomore. On Wednesday, when the jury began deliberating, a judge revoked his bail without explanation.
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