DRUG ADDICTS, PROSTITUTES TARGETED BY RAPISTS, GROUP SAYS

Given the shame they harbor about their lifestyle and the fear of being
arrested if they talk, it's no surprise that drug addicts and prostitutes
are often the targets of sexual predators.

"In general, this is a vulnerable population; perpetrators of sexual
assault pick victims who won't tell," said Jill Morris, communications
director for the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape.

Rapists often pick those under the influence of drugs, Morris said, because
they may not have "the best reasoning abilities to protect themselves and
they, like prostitutes, are also more likely afraid to contact police
because of the fear of legal repercussions for their own activities."

Community leaders and average citizens were stunned over the arrest of top
Penn Township official Michael L. Johnson Jr. on charges he raped a
self-admitted drug user in Baltimore and two women who divulged to police
they were drug addicts and prostitutes in York City.

But Morris said the descriptions of the alleged victims are no surprise.

According to the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, 94 percent of street
prostitutes have reported some form of sexual assault and are "sexually
victimized at alarming rates throughout their lives."

The bottom line is those who are often looked down upon by society should
be viewed by the public and judicial system no differently than any other
victim, she said.

And then of course, she said, there is the notion "that you can't rape

"No one deserves to be raped, regardless of the activity they are engaged
in," Morris said. "Those victims are just as valid as any other victim and
the perpetrator should be brought to justice."

Upon learning that Johnson -- whom York County authorities have dubbed a
"serial rapist" - was at large Tuesday afternoon, Morris said the coalition
issued alerts via e-mails to its various affiliates, including medical
officials and shelters, to be on the look out for him.

"It is not what the victim does, but what the perpetrator has chosen to
do," she said.

Johnson's positions of power both as president of the township's Board of
Commissioners as well as a former police officer might have also increased
the shock value of the charges, but Morris said it goes to show that there
is no one set profile for a rape suspect, whose primary motivation --
albeit a characteristic often hidden from friends, co-workers and family --
is to control and be in power, she said.

"The fact of the matter is that it could be the person next door or the
person you work with," she said. Most people find it difficult to reconcile
that someone capable of such acts would be a seemingly respectable citizen,
she said.

"We want to see our perpetrators a mile away, but they can be anywhere at
anytime," Morris said.