ESSEX, MD—A Baltimore County police officer was sentenced on Friday to home detention in connection with the 2019 rape of a 22-year-old woman.

On August 20, 2021, Anthony Westerman, 27, was convicted of two counts of second-degree rape, third-degree sexual offense, fourth-degree sexual offense, and second-degree assault of a 22-year-old woman in connection with an incident that occurred in October 2017. He had also been convicted of second-degree assault of another woman for an event that occurred in June 2019.

His most recent assignment was at the Essex Precinct.

The rape conviction stemmed from an incident in which Westerman had taken the intoxicated victim from a bar to his home, where she passed out. She awoke to find Westerman on top of her, performing vaginal intercourse.

At sentencing on Friday, the judge determined that he had only intended to convict Westerman on one of the second-degree rape counts and, therefore, merged the sentences for all of the other counts into his sentence for one count of second-degree rape. The judge then ruled that there was not evidence of any psychological injury to the victim, despite the fact that she indicated she has received therapy for the attack.  The judge had also stated at the time of the verdict that what had happened to the victim “may be the most traumatic moment of” her life, according to the Baltimore County State’s Attorney’s Office.

The judge proceeded to sentence Westerman to fifteen years of incarceration, but suspended all of the sentence except for four years of home detention. He will be on probation after his home detention. The judge allowed Westerman to remain released to private home detention pending his appeal of the convictions.

The judge also sentenced Westerman to one day in jail for the second-degree assault of the other victim for what he described as a “boorish” act.

Westerman has remained suspended without pay from the Baltimore County Police Department since he was charged with the offenses.

Photo by Sora Shimazaki from Pexels