Man learns sentence in rape linked to party at UC Davis. Prosecutors hail ‘courageous’ victim
A San Pablo man was sentenced to three years in state prison Friday for the 2019 forcible rape of a Bay Area woman at UC Davis, according to the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office.
David Padilla-Chicas, 23, who was not a student of nor otherwise affiliated with the university, was found guilty by a Yolo County jury on Dec. 27, prosecutors said.
“The victim was so courageous,” prosecutor Stephanie Allen said. “With all the trauma she suffered, I know it was so affirming for her when the jury, after thoughtfully listening to all the evidence, came back with a guilty verdict.”
In early April 2019, the woman attended a party of more than 40 people at an apartment on the campus of the Public Ivy League university, according to officials. Padilla-Chicas was also there.
Officials said after the woman became intoxicated, she went to the bathroom where Padilla-Chicas followed, offering to help.
Once inside the bathroom, authorities said, Padilla-Chicas forcibly raped the victim on the floor and told her to pretend to be throwing up as he left.
Witnesses found the woman “in distress” on the bathroom floor, authorities said, where she immediately reported the rape.
According to officials, Padilla-Chicas originally “vehemently denied” any sexual contact with the victim. Prosecutors said DNA linked Padilla-Chicas to the woman.
He changed his story at trial, testifying that he and the woman had consensual intercourse, officials said. The jury deliberated for four and a half hours before coming back with a guilty verdict.
