Man To Answer Charges In 1991 Boston Rapes

A Boston man will answer to multiple rape charges in a case in which prosecutors brought a so-called "John Doe" indictment and another man served 12 years in prison before being cleared.

Jerry Dixon is to appear Thursday in Suffolk Superior Court in connection with three alleged rapes in Boston that occurred over a four-month period in 1991.

Before they were able to identify Dixon, prosecutors indicted his genetic profile in 2006 to prevent the statute of limitations from expiring.

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court later upheld the right of prosecutors to seek John Doe indictments, which had been used by prosecutors in other states to keep cold cases going.

Anthony Powell was originally convicted of one of the rapes in 1992. He was exonerated by DNA testing and released from prison in 2004.