Alex Kelly (born May 8, 1967) is an American convicted

rapist Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or agai ...

Early life

Alex Kelly is the son of Melanie Reisdorf Kelly, a travel agent, and Joe Kelly, a plumber. He grew up in the Noroton Heights section of

Darien, Connecticut Darien ( ) is a coastal town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. With a population of 21,499 and a land area of just under 13 square miles, it is the smallest town on Connecticut's Gold Coast. It has the youngest population of any ...

. In 1986, he graduated from

Darien High School Darien High School is the single public high school serving the town of Darien, Connecticut, in the United States. Background In 2014, Darien High School had the highest SAT scores in the state. In the 2004–2005 school year, Darien had the s ...

. His older brother, Christopher, died of a drug overdose in 1991 while Kelly was on the run. His younger brother, Russell, died in 2004 in a car accident in

Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U.S. Congress with the Yellowst ...

, while Kelly was incarcerated.

Crimes

Kelly was charged with committing two rapes within a four-day period in Darien, Connecticut, in February 1986. He was charged first with the rape of a 16-year-old Stamford girl, and then of a teenager in Darien. In one of the rapes, according to the police, he encountered a girl who lived near him and offered her a ride home from a party. He was later also charged with drug possession and two counts of kidnapping. In addition to those cases, five other women have told prosecutors and an author that Kelly raped them when he was a teen, although he has never been charged with those attacks. Before his trial was due to begin on February 16, 1987, Kelly fled the United States and spent the next seven years on the run, mostly in Europe. Kelly's parents allegedly supported him financially during this seven-year period, although they may have been unaware of his exact locations. Law enforcement authorities suspected that the parents had been in contact with their son and, on at least one occasion, raided the parents' house in an attempt to find evidence of Kelly's location or their assistance to him. In January 1995, the Connecticut State Police discovered photos in the Kelly home of Alex with his parents in Europe the previous year. His parents were charged with obstruction, after which Kelly surrendered in Switzerland. He was

extradited Extradition is an action wherein one jurisdiction delivers a person accused or convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, over to the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enforcement procedure between the two jurisdi ...

to the United States on rape and kidnapping charges. Several lesser counts were excluded, as they were not specifically listed in the extradition treaty between the two nations. While out on bail, Kelly was allowed by the court to take classes at

Norwalk Community College Norwalk Community College (NCC), formerly Norwalk State Technical College and Norwalk Community-Technical College, is a public community college in Norwalk, Connecticut. It is the third-largest of the twelve colleges in the Connecticut State Col ...

. Kelly faced two trials in 1997. After the first was declared a

mistrial In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, ...

, the second resulted in his conviction for the first rape and a sentence of 10 years in prison. He pleaded

no contest ' is a legal term that comes from the Latin phrase for "I do not wish to contend". It is also referred to as a plea of no contest or no defense. In criminal trials in certain United States jurisdictions, it is a plea where the defendant neith ...

to the second rape and was sentenced to an additional 10 years in prison (sentence to run concurrently with the 10-year sentence). In 2005, after having served eight years of his 10-year sentence, Kelly appeared before a Connecticut

parole board A parole board is a panel of people who decide whether an offender should be released from prison on parole after serving at least a minimum portion of their sentence as prescribed by the sentencing judge. Parole boards are used in many jurisdiction ...

; his bid for release was rejected.Yardley, William
Parole Bid Is Rejected for Rapist Who Fled U.S.
''The New York Times'', March 4, 2005. Accessed November 5, 2007. At the hearing Kelly apologized many times saying he was "hypercompetitive" and self-centered, and that he has finally realized that the world is bigger than him. On November 24, 2007, Kelly was released from prison on good behavior. He is required to serve 10 years probation, perform 200 hours of community service, pay a $10,000 fine, and register with the Connecticut sex offender registry. Kelly has claimed that, while in prison, he earned a bachelor's degree in economics and third-world development. He has since worked as a skydiving instructor.

Portrayals in the media

Kelly's story was recounted in an episode of

Dominick Dunne Dominick John Dunne (October 29, 1925 – August 26, 2009) was an American writer, investigative journalist, and producer. He began his career in film and television as a producer of the pioneering gay film '' The Boys in the Band'' (1970) and ...

's Court TV series ''

Dominick Dunne's Power, Privilege, and Justice ''Dominick Dunne's Power, Privilege, and Justice'' is an American crime TV series that examined real-life cases of crime, passion, and greed involving privileged or famous people. The episodes were shown on truTV (formerly Court TV) and on Star ...

''. '' Crime in Connecticut: The Story of Alex Kelly'' (also known as ''The Return of Alex Kelly''), is based on Alex Kelly. The Kelly case was also featured in an episode of A&E Network's series ''

American Justice ''American Justice'' is an American criminal justice television program airing on the A&E Network. From 1992–2005, the show was hosted by television reporter Bill Kurtis. The show features interesting or notable cases, such as the murder ...

'' and featured on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

's news magazine show, ''

Turning Point A turning point, or climax, is the point of highest tension in a narrative work. Turning Point or Turning Points may refer to: Film * ''The Turning Point'', a 1914 silent film starring Caroline Cooke * ''The Turning Point'' (1920 film), an Ame ...

'', whose segment title was "Fugitive Son: The Hunt for Alex Kelly." ''Vanity Fair Confidential'' aired an episode entitled "The Fugitive Son" on January 23, 2017.

References

External links

Connecticut: Stamford: Rapist Won't Seek New Trial
*
''Crime in Connecticut''Connecticut Sex Offender Registry page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Alex Andrew 1967 births 20th-century American criminals American prisoners and detainees American people convicted of rape Living people Place of birth missing (living people) People from Darien, Connecticut Prisoners and detainees of Connecticut People extradited from Switzerland People extradited to the United States American male criminals Wealth in the United States Crimes in Connecticut Darien High School alumni