Solano County man found guilty of forcible rape, faces multiple life sentences
ABOVE: Kenneth Weathersby Jr. booking photo / Solano County District Attorney
A Solano County man whose rape trial was underway when the COVID-19 pandemic struck has been found guilty on eight counts.
According to an official press release from the Solano County District Attorney’s Office, 35-year-old Kenneth Weathersby Jr. was brought to trial on accusations of kidnapping and forcibly raping two female victims, one of whom was a minor, at gunpoint over the course of two weeks in July 2018.
In the first incident, on July 16, Weathersby kidnapped the victim as she was walking in the city of Vallejo, driving her around for several hours and committing numerous acts of forcible rape and oral copulation upon her.
Two weeks later, on July 30, he kidnapped a second victim in Vallejo — a minor — under a similar MO. At some point, she was able to escape while they were stopped at a red light.
Though both victims survived the encounters, the press release did not specify whether the first victim escaped or was released.
Weathersby’s trial began on February 24 of this year, but was temporarily halted when the state’s emergency shelter-in-place order was enacted. The trial resumed on May 20 with proper social distancing measures in place.
After less than a day of deliberation, on May 21, the jury found Weathersby guilty on eight counts against the two victims, including kidnapping to commit rape, forcible rape, forcible oral copulation, and forcible oral copulation on a minor over 14 years.
For his crimes he faces multiple life sentences, including life without the possibility of parole.
