Gwinnett County Man Sentenced to Three Consecutive Life Sentences for Rape

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga.—A Gwinnett County jury has convicted a Duluth man on five counts of rape for incidents that occurred in August 2020. The defendant, Anthony Dontae Murphy, Jr., 25, was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole.

The victim reported the sexual assaults to police in July 2024. According to her testimony, Murphy entered the room where she was sleeping on multiple occasions in August 2020. She stated that on one occasion, she woke up to find him lying in bed next to her, and on several subsequent nights, she woke up to him having non-consensual sex with her. The victim testified that the assaults occurred at least five times. She said she was afraid to resist because she had witnessed Murphy physically abuse another woman.

During the trial, the victim also testified that Murphy used a butter knife to enter her room.

“This defendant’s behavior is despicable,” said District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson. “We are pleased with the verdict and the sentence, and we pray that this victim has been able to heal physically, emotionally, spiritually and mentally from this.”

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Mikaela Henderson and Kathy Li, with assistance from several members of the Special Victims Unit and the Duluth Police Department.