Accused Peabody Murderer Wants Rape Charge Dismissed

PEABODY, MA -- A lawyer for Wes Doughty asked a judge to drop a rape charge -- one of several he is facing in a double murder in Peabody in 2017. Doughty is awaiting trial in the murder and rape of Jennifer O'Connor, 40, as well as the murder of her boyfriend, Mark Greenlaw, 37. He is also charged with arson, carjacking, kidnapping and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

According to the Salem News, which first reported this story, defense lawyer John Apruzzese argued that there was no forensic evidence linking Doughty to the rape and that Doughty's co-defendant, Michael Hebb, will likely invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self incrimination if he testifies.

Also on Tuesday, a trial date was set for Sept. 9 in Salem Superior Court. Doughty is accused of shooting and killing Greenlaw and then raping and killing his girlfriend, O'Connor, inside a house at 19 Farm Avenue in Peabody in February 2017. Greenlaw was a prisoner at the Middleton Jail from 2004 to 2010 and from 2011 to 2014.

Hebb pleaded guilty in October 2017 to helping cover up O'Connor's murder and trying to burn down the house. He was sentenced up to seven years in prison but could still be charged in the death of Greenlaw.

For more on this story, see the Salem News. Subscribe to Peabody Patch for more local news and real-time alerts.

File photo by Mike Carraggi/Patch.