Maximum sentence for Pullman serial rapist
Aug. 20—Kenneth Downing was sentenced to as much as life in prison Friday afternoon in Whitman County Superior Court in Colfax for charges related to serial rape cases in Pullman he pleaded guilty to earlier this summer.
Downing, 47, received the maximum sentence on all five counts — four counts of rape in the first degree and assault in the second degree with sexual motivation. The Elk, Wash., man won't be eligible for parole for almost 24 years. The sentence was handed down by Judge Gary Libey.
If Downing is released from prison, he must register as a sex offender and will be on lifetime supervision with the Washington Department of Corrections. Survivors have lifetime protection orders; Downing will be prohibited from contacting any victims.
Statements from all three survivors were read during the sentencing. Downing's wife, children and nephew read their statements as well; all said they would never have expected something like this from him. Downing's wife said she was pregnant with their fifth child when the rapes occurred. She added there were no signs to indicate the crimes he committed.
During Downing's statement, he attributed the rapes to a porn addiction. He said for the past 18 years he has been close with God, praying for the survivors and for mercy.
Dan LeBeau, chief deputy prosecutor with the Whitman County Prosecutor's Officer, asked for the maximum sentence because the armed rapes were premeditated and "disciplinarily cruel." LeBeau said these crimes affected the survivors, the family of survivors and Downing's family in a harmful way.
The sentence has put an end to an almost 20-year-old serial rape case in Pullman's Pioneer Hill neighborhood. Downing was arrested in March of this year as a suspect in rape cases in 2003 and 2004. He pleaded guilty to the charges July 9.
The first survivor reported being raped three times at gunpoint in November 2003 at home in Pullman. Two other survivors reported finding a man in their home with a gun and a knife in March 2004; the man raped one woman and the other was tied up.
DNA samples were taken in both instances, and both cases contained the same DNA profile. No suspects were identified and a John Doe warrant was issued for the assailant.
The case grew cold but the Pullman Police Department didn't give up. There were no matches for the unknown man until 2020, when the department's Special Investigations Unit submitted the DNA samples to be analyzed by a forensic genetic genealogist.
The genealogist found Downing's DNA was related to the assailant, and they obtained a DNA sample from Downing. The Spokane Police Department arrested Downing, per Pullman Police Department request, while he was working at a construction site in Spokane.
After his arrest, Downing pleaded not guilty to 13 charges in March, such as four counts of first-degree rape, three counts of second-degree assault, three counts of unlawful imprisonment with sexual motivation, two counts of first-degree burglary and one count of indecent liberties.
"After 20 years of hell, I hope today marks a turning point in the lives of the survivors," LeBeau said in a Whitman County Prosecutor's Office news release. "The monster known as Kenneth Downing is now where he belongs. We now have justice for the survivors and peace for the community."
Pearce can be reached at epearce@dnews.com or on Twitter @Emily_A_Pearce.
