Woman sexually assaulted, stabbed in church courtyard

A woman was attacked, sexually assaulted and stabbed near a major downtown intersection Thursday morning, police say.

The 24-year-old woman was walking by herself when she was attacked near the corner of Market and Third streets, said Lucy Crockett, spokeswoman for the Wilmington Police Department.

Police said the attack occurred shortly after 1 a.m. in a church courtyard at the southeast corner of the intersection – the location of St. James Parish Episcopal church. The church is in the heart of downtown Wilmington, across from the Burgwin-Wright House and the New Hanover Judicial Complex.

The victim was stabbed several times, and her injuries were serious enough to require surgery, Crockett said.

A passing motorist stopped to help the woman after the attack, she said.

Police want anyone who might have seen or heard anything in that area around 1 a.m. to call them. Crockett said the area usually stays busy well into the early morning hours, so police are hopeful a witness will come forward.

The neighborhood

Police are at the early stage of their investigation, Crockett said, and no further information was available Thursday.

She said the incident shows that Wilmington, like any city, can be a dangerous place for a woman to walk alone at night.

Kate Woodhouse said she and a female friend walked past the crime scene Thursday morning. An officer told them it wasn’t safe for the two of them to be walking that late, which Woodhouse said surprised her.

“It’s really scary. I had felt safe in the past,” she said. “I will never be walking home alone again. It’s definitely a wake-up call.”

On Thursday evening, several people near the intersection of Third and Market streets said that hearing of crime downtown isn’t unusual, but that the attack occurred in such a well-traveled area is surprising.

Rabbi Harley I. Karz-Wagman, who works at the Temple of Israel a block away, said the neighborhood is busy and safe well into the evening. Churches hold services, people head toward Front Street, and a ghost tour even operates nearby, he said.

After midnight, things might be different, he said. He doesn’t know.

Adam Crain, 23, who lives nearby, said the area is often busy well into the early morning, especially Fridays through Sundays. But Wednesday night to Thursday morning is also pretty busy, he said.

Crain, who has lived in a nearby apartment for a year, said he hasn’t heard of anything else that bad happening in the area.

Stuart Jackson, 21, said most people head out at night in groups, but that sometimes someone leaves the group to head home early. Jackson said he knows several young women who live in the area and walk to and from downtown bars at night. He worried the victim might be a friend.

“That’s ridiculous,” he said of the attack. “Girls shouldn’t have to worry about walking around alone down Third Street.”

Crain and Jackson both said police are visible downtown at night, especially along Front Street. In light of the attack, Jackson said some officers should walk around more in neighboring areas.

Robin Rhaney, who recently moved to Wilmington, said she walks Third Street almost every day, but she wouldn’t walk there alone at night. She also said police are visible in the area and she’s surprised such a violent crime occurred without anyone hearing anything.

“Third Street is busy day and night,” Rhaney said. “That’s what makes it even stranger.”

David Reynolds: 343-2075

dave.reynolds@starnewsonline.com