Salem Defense Attorney Indicted On Rape Charges

SALEM, MA — The Salem criminal defense attorney held without bail on charges he sexually assaulted an incapacitated woman while she was asleep was indicted Tuesday on rape and aggravated burglary charges.

Gary Zerola, 49, of Salem had been held without bail since Jan. 15 following a dangerousness hearing after he was accused of attending a party with the 21-year-old, then later entered her apartment after 2 a.m. and assaulted her while she was incapacitated, Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins said.

The DA's Office said Zerola was facing charges in the same court after being accused of raping a different woman in 2016. He was out on $10,000 bond on that case.

A Suffolk County grand jury issued Tuesday's indictment.

A longtime defense attorney, Zerola also worked as an assistant district attorney in Essex County for one year, and for the Suffolk County DA's Office for two months in 2000.

Zerola was arraigned last month in Boston Municipal Court on charges of rape and breaking and entering with felony intent.

"The court agreed with our position that Mr. Zerola is a danger to the community," Rollins said in a statement after the arraignment.

Prosecutors said on Jan. 11 Zerola met a woman at a gathering and accompanied her back to her apartment with a friend of theirs. Prosecutors said the woman woke up the next morning to find Zerola, who had returned to her apartment without permission, sexually assaulting her.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Information for this article was supplied by the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office. Patch follows a name removal policy for those listed in its published police reports.