DeKalb County: EMS driver convicted of raping woman he claimed to be helping

DEKALB COUNTY, GA—DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston announced this week a conviction by jury trial in the case of an Emergency Medical Services (EMS) driver from College Park accused of raping a woman who had fallen asleep in her car.

Jurors found Bruce Andre Hines, 47, guilty of Rape for the sexual assault of the  51-year-old woman on March 5, 2023.

According to the investigation, the victim called 911 to report that she had been raped by an EMS driver that morning between 3 and 4 a.m. inside of her car in the 4000 block of Glenwood Road in unincorporated Decatur. 

The victim, who was out with friends the evening before, had fallen asleep in her car near an apartment complex off of Glenwood Road. She recalled being woken up by an EMS driver, later identified as Defendant Hines. He told her that a call had come in to police reporting a person asleep in a car, and that he had cancelled the call so she would not go to jail.

Defendant Hines moved the victim’s vehicle and the emergency SUV he was driving to an abandoned parking lot, then got into the car with the victim. The victim, who had fallen back asleep, woke up to Hines assaulting her in her car.

After assaulting her, Hines used the victim’s phone to call one of her friends, stating that the victim was not in a safe area to leave her car. The friend agreed to meet Hines with the victim and her car at a gas station in the 4000 block of Covington Highway. The friend dropped Hines back off at his SUV. Once Hines exited the friend’s vehicle, the victim made an immediate outcry about the assault and called police to report the crime.

Surveillance video from a nearby hotel shows several emergency vehicles, including the EMS SUV, showing up at the hotel around 3 a.m. in response to an incident at that location. The SUV can be seen leaving the hotel around 3:30 a.m. and pulling up to the victim’s car parked across the street. The video shows the driver of the SUV approach the driver’s side window of the car on foot, then drive both vehicles to an abandoned parking lot next to the apartment complex. He spends several minutes with the victim in the lot.

The team in an ambulance that responded to the hotel identified Hines as the driver of the SUV. DNA collected from the victim’s clothing after the assault was a match to Hines. 

Immediately following the verdict, Judge Daniel Coursey, who presided over the trial sitting for the DeKalb County Superior Court, sentenced Hines to 25 years to serve in custody. Upon his release, ines will be required to spend the remainder of his life on probation and to register as a sex offender.

The case, assigned to the Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault Unit, was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Furhawn Shah, with assistance from Senior Assistant District Attorney Emily Donkervoet, and District Attorney Investigator Christopher Franklin. DeKalb County Police Department Det. O. Amey led the initial investigation.