Student Arrested For Rape At Maryland Private School

LAUREL, Md. (WUSA) - Howard County police arrested an 18-year-old high school student late Monday for raping a 15-year-old female student inside a private school in Laurel on Friday. John Louis Rivers, Jr., of Hyattsville, was charged with first-degree and second-degree rape, as well as first and second degree assault.

Police say the victim, who was not identified, approached a school administrator at the Phillips School, in the 8900 block of Whiskey Bottom Road, Friday afternoon to report she was injured. The school official saw obvious injuries on the girl and called an ambulance. Paramedics transported the victim to Howard County General Hospital. Police will not release the specific details of her injuries.

The victim told police that Rivers approached her when she was alone in a stairwell at the school and raped her. Both teens are students at the school.

Detectives served a search warrant over the weekend at Rivers' home and recovered evidence. Police said in a statement released on Tuesday that due to the ongoing investigation and the sensitive nature of the case, police will not release information about the specific evidence recovered. Rivers was arrested at his home without incident. He is in the Howard County Detention Center on no bond.

The Phillips School is a private school "serving children with multiple disabilities, behavioral problems, emotional difficulties, learning disabilities, mental retardation and autism," according to its Web site.