72-year-old Gainesville man charged with raping housemate

Staff report

Updated on September 8 with bail information.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Melvin Jerome Patterson, 72, was arrested yesterday for allegedly raping his housemate, along with threatening her with a dagger-like knife and preventing her from leaving.

The victim told a Gainesville Police Department officer that she lives with Patterson, but they maintain separate bedrooms; she said she went into his bedroom just after midnight on August 31 to watch TV, and he started trying to initiate sexual intercourse with her. She said she told him at least twice that she did not want to have sex, but he noticed a pocket knife in her bra and said he had a weapon of his own before producing a large dagger-like blade from next to his bed. He allegedly told her she would not be leaving his room and said he would cut her head off while he was holding the knife.

The victim said Patterson raped her while she stayed quiet out of fear for her safety. She said after he was done, she went back to her own bedroom, but Patterson came to her bedroom and raped her again; she said she again stayed quiet out of fear, but she did not want to have sex with him.

The victim said Patterson raped her a third time by coming up behind her while she was in the kitchen.

When officers arrived at the residence, the victim reportedly said Patterson had a knife in his pocket, but no knife was found on his person; Patterson reportedly stated spontaneously that he’d had consensual sex with the victim, and he consented to a search of his bedroom. Officers found a large dagger-style blade between Patterson’s bed and nightstand, where it would have been within easy reach from his bed.

Post Miranda, Patterson reportedly said again that he’d had consensual sexual intercourse with the victim, both in his bedroom and in her bedroom; however, he would not provide any details about how the acts were initiated or consent was obtained. He later reportedly decided to wait for a lawyer before answering more questions.

Patterson reportedly told officers that the victim has frequently made false allegations about him to law enforcement, but he acknowledged that she only once accused him of sexual battery: in a 1996 case, Patterson was arrested for sexual battery, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, and battery against the same victim, and he was adjudicated guilty of aggravated assault and battery.

The officer concluded that the consistency between the stories of Patterson and the victim about the sexual incidents, along with the presence of the dagger-like blade at his bedside, provided probable cause that the victim had been forced to engage in non-consensual sexual intercourse.

Patterson has been charged with sexual battery, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and false imprisonment. He has nine felony convictions (three violent) and 17 misdemeanor convictions (three violent), and he has served seven state prison sentences, with his most recent release in 2005. Judge Joy Danne ordered him held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s Office to hold him without bail until trial; however, the motion was withdrawn, and on September 8, Judge James Colaw set bail at $200,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.