Convicted Minneapolis rapist sentenced after rape kit went untested for a decade

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - It took a pair of rape victims more than a dozen years to get justice for a 2010 gunpoint attack. On Monday, their assailant, James Works was sentenced to more than 32 years in prison. The case took so long to prosecute because critical DNA evidence sat untested for years.

"I can just let you know that in this case, you know, justice was delayed, but it wasn't denied," Hennepin County District Court Judge William Koch told Works during sentencing. "Justice arrived, just late, but it did arrive."

The Hennepin County Attorney’s office reports the case against Works is the first one to net a conviction in a joint effort to test previously untested sexual assault kits collected by the Minneapolis Police Department.

There were a couple of reasons these rape kits went untested, the victims told FOX 9 they were young, troubled and scared, and had used fake names with investigators when they first reported the assault, explaining they did not want to be arrested themselves. But they never stopped hoping this day would come. And they were in the courtroom to confront the man who hurt them so horrifically.

"Thirteen years ago, he took a piece of me that I felt like I would never get back," Victim #1 told the court during her emotional impact statement.

One at a time, the two victims stepped in front of Judge Koch, just feet from their attacker, and shared years of pain and trauma over what happened that June night, 2010.

They asked FOX 9 not to show their faces on camera but insisted their words be heard far beyond the courtroom walls.

Victim #2 said, "I was disrespected, dehumanized, belittled… stripped of my dignity and self-esteem."

Evidence would show the women were held at gunpoint and raped by Works. But evidence collected by investigators at the time went untested for more than a decade.

Finally, in 2021, as part of the joint Minneapolis Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension ran DNA tests that hit on Works, who had emerged as a potential suspect in other assaults on area women through the years. A jury found Works guilty at trial in late March. Judge Koch handed him a 390-month sentence or 32-and-a-half years for rape and kidnapping.

"This individual sexually assaulted two people over ten years ago," Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty told FOX 9’s Paul Blume after the hearing. "He is a danger to the community."

Moriarty said her office is focused on getting justice in sex assault cases, describing a multi-faceted effort including continued forensic testing of rape kits that may remain on evidence shelves, embedding a prosecutor within MPD’s Sex Crimes Unit, and prioritizing victim advocacy to help guide individuals through the criminal justice system once they file a report.

"We know the initial response and what happens right after that is really critical with gathering the types of evidence that we need to be successful in these kinds of prosecutions. So that is a priority of mine," explained Moriarty.

"Regardless of the situation of how it turned out right now, I accept the consequences," said Works, who attempted to minimize his conduct when given the opportunity to address the court.

But it is his victim-survivors who vowed to have the last word.

"I just wanted to let him know that he will not determine where my life ends. And he will not. I will not live in fear anymore because of his actions," concluded Victim #1.

Given state sentencing guidelines, at the very least, Works will spend nearly 22 years behind bars, meaning he will be in his 70s when he is released. At which point, Works will be required to register as a predatory offender for the rest of his life.

The BCA reported Monday that there are still 621 untested sexual assault kits waiting to be tested statewide. The average turnaround time for testing right now is 124 days.