Local
Trans woman reports rape in D.C. shelter
19-year-old male resident of same group home arrested for assault
D.C. police on Nov. 26 arrested a 19-year-old male resident of a group home for abused and neglected youth for allegedly sexually assaulting a transgender woman of the same age who also lived in the home.
Records filed in D.C. Superior Court show that police charged James Cottom with first-degree sexual abuse against the transgender woman at the Saga Adventures group home at 2808 Pomeroy Rd., S.E.
A police arrest affidavit says the woman told police she was asleep in her bed in an upper floor bedroom when she was awakened by Cottom, who was “standing next to her bed looking at her and holding an orange condom wrapper and some lubricant.”
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The affidavit says the woman told him, “What are you doing in my room? Get out.” It says Cottom replied, “I want to fuck.”
According to the affidavit, the woman attempted to run out of the room but Cottom grabbed her, threw her onto the bed, and forced her to engage in receptive anal intercourse while she struggled to break free. It says Cottom, who wore a condom during the assault, fled the room after the woman managed to call another resident in the house for help on her phone.
The affidavit says the person whom the trans woman called for help called police a short time later. It says the woman “positively identified” Cottom as the person who assaulted her, and police arrested him on the scene.
Arnett Smith, administrator of the Saga Adventures house, confirmed that the incident occurred at the house. He said the D.C. Child and Family Services Agency (CFSA), which places children and youth at the house, transferred Cottom to another city-approved youth facility while he awaits trial.
The CFSA website says it serves as the city’s public child and youth welfare agency responsible for children and youth at risk of abuse and neglect in their homes. It says when the agency determines children and youth aren’t safe in their homes, it places them in foster care or facilities such as group homes.
D.C. transgender activist Earline Budd, an official with the local organization Transgender Health Empowerment, has expressed concern that transgender youth placed in city and private shelters and group homes have often encountered abuse and violence from other residents of the facilities.
Budd and other transgender activists have called on the city to take steps to protect transgender residents of shelters and group homes.
When asked if the group homes operated by Saga Adventures provide adequate security for LGBT residents, Smith said they do.
“You can rest assured that the people are safe there,” he said.
But when asked how his security arrangements enabled one resident of his group home to sexually assault another, he declined to comment, saying strict rules of confidentiality for the juvenile residents of the facility prevented him from discussing a specific case.
The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at [email protected].
The Comings & Goings column also invites LGBTQ college students to share their successes with us. If you have been elected to a student government position, gotten an exciting internship, or are graduating and beginning your career with a great job, let us know so we can share your success.
Congratulations to Yadiel Meléndez, on their new role as Community Associate, with the Wanda Alston Foundation. Meléndez is piloting a new role as a Community Associate at the Wanda Alston Foundation, where they support queer and trans young people in finding their footing, building independence, and experiencing a housing community where they are seen, valued, and affirmed. They are coming into this role with more than a decade of experience as a community organizer and operations specialist, supporting diverse communities through service, advocacy, and program coordination.
Previously they worked for Right Proper Brewing Shaw as a server and bartender and at Sephora, Washington, DC, and at FreshFarm, DC, in bilingual food access. They also worked freelance to build foundational structures for local queer BIPOC performance art coalitions, producing variety shows to curate space for marginalized performance artists in the community. They were a production manager for Haus of Hart Productions, a BIPOC centric performance art production. They also worked as field staff with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention in Stafford, Va.
Meléndez is bilingual, Spanish and English. Their work is guided by a commitment to dignity, safety, and trauma-informed engagement, particularly within LGBTQ and BIPOC communities.
Congratulations also to Ben Rosen LICSW, on his new role as program director, with the Wanda Alston Foundation. Rosen previously worked with Fountain House’s OnRamps program, helping to build a new, innovative outreach program for individuals considered chronically homeless, and living with serious mental illness, in the Times Square area of New York. Rosen is a Psychotherapist, having worked with SG Psychotherapy, and as the psychotherapist with the Nest Community Health Center (URAM).
Rosen has a B.F.A. in Theatre Arts: Musical Theatre, Minor in Psychology (Cum Laude) from Malloy University Conservatory; and his M.S.W. in Clinical Practice with Individuals, Families, and Groups, from The Silberman School of Social Work, Hunter College, N.Y. He is independently licensed in New York and Washington, D.C.
Rehoboth Beach
BLUF leather social set for April 10 in Rehoboth
Attendees encouraged to wear appropriate gear
Diego’s in Rehoboth Beach hosts a monthly leather happy hour. April’s edition is scheduled for Friday, April 10, 5-7 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to wear appropriate gear. The event is billed as an official event of BLUF, the free community group for men interested in leather. After happy hour, the attendees are encouraged to reconvene at Local Bootlegging Company for dinner, which allows cigar smoking. There’s no cover charge for either event.
District of Columbia
Celebrations of life planned for Sean Bartel
Two memorial events scheduled in D.C.
Two celebrations of life are planned for Sean Christopher Bartel, 48, who was found deceased on a hiking trail in Argentina on or around March 15. Bartel began his career as a television news reporter and news anchor at stations in Louisville, Ky., and Evansville, Ind., before serving as Senior Video Producer for the D.C.-based International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union from 2013 to 2024.
A memorial gathering is planned for Friday, April 10, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. at the IBEW International Office (900 7th St., N.W.), according to a statement by the DC Gay Flag Football League, where Bartel was a longtime member. A celebration of life is planned that same evening, 6-8 p.m. at Trade (1410 14th St., N.W.).
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BLUF leather social set for April 10 in Rehoboth
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