Rape at O'Neal Hall: A Cover Up or Just a Local Myth?

 

Amid the new accounts of sexual assault at the University of North Alabama, we’ll look back at a 1970s attack that may or may not have actually occurred. In that era, male and female students were routinely separated as far as living quarters; only certain males were allowed in sleeping areas, and those were almost always service workers. Did a delivery man make his way to an O’Neal Hall dorm room in the middle of the workday and proceed to rape one of the students?

At the center of the rape story was a Lauderdale County native that we’ll call Todd Hunter. Todd first came to the attention of local authorities when he was accused of following young females in his rattletrap car. A long time college student, Todd was familiar with many of the campus buildings and organizations. He seemingly managed to keep a low profile when in public, but when in private, his actions became more overtly sexual…and sinister.

Years later, Todd was diagnosed with a type of schizophrenia, but at the time, most females who came into contact with Hunter simply found him obnoxious and unnerving. Due to his part-time employment at local mini-marts, many young women did unfortunately come into contact with Todd, who described these girls as eager to be in his company, even after he married.

Yes, Todd managed to marry, father two children, and move up in the world of employment while seeming to control his dark side…for a time. In the late 1970s, this disturbed young man found work with a soft drink company, a job that took him to all parts of the college campus including the girls’ dorms. Some drink machines were located on upper floors, allowing Todd to move freely about the sleeping rooms and chat with any students who came into his orbit.

While the above information has been verified, the following has not. There were always reports of attacks at the university, but many were obviously exaggerations of pranks and never reported to proper authorities. Then students found an O’Neal resident distraught in her room. 

She allegedly told her friends that a soft drink delivery man, whose name she didn’t know, had forced his way past her as she entered her room and proceeded to rape her. It took days for the crime to be reported to UNA authorities, and was supposedly never reported to the Florence Police Department. In the interim, Todd continued to deliver soft drinks to the campus.

No arrests were ever made in the alleged rape. Todd Hunter soon lost his job at the local bottling company, but gossip about the rape continued for years. Todd’s wife ultimately left him, and he died three decades later in a controlled medical facility.

Did UNA attempt to cover up this sexual assault or was it just a local urban myth to make young women more aware of their surroundings on campus? O’Neal Hall was eventually torn down to make way for an addition to what is now the Guillot Center. While most students today probably have never heard of Todd, the women who had the misfortune to encounter him still remember him and say thanks that they didn’t become his victim.

Rape at Colbert Square

 

Located close to Sheffield High School, Colbert Square Apartments have been a fixture in north-central Sheffield since 1950. Over the years, as the desirability of the apartments decreased, crime began to do the opposite. After one particular notorious shooting in late 2008, a group of residents asked the city council to take steps to clean up the area, even if it meant razing the large complex.

Those who have resided in the low-rent units have described the apartments as small, smelly, smoke stained, and a home to vermin of various kinds. While these apartments hardly seem desirable in themselves, the rent (currently $285.00/month according to Apartment Finder) is a huge draw to those facing financial hardships for whatever reason.

Then in October 2013, a violent crime set the whole town's nerves on edge. From Shoalanda Speaks blogs:

Last Tuesday night a man visited the Colbert Square Apartments, a complex adjacent to Sheffield Junior High School, a complex that residents had reported on to the Sheffield City Council as far back as 2009. He knocked on three doors before he found a resident who opened the door to him. All three apartments belonged to women.

At the third apartment, the man asked for Debbie. When told there was no Debbie there, the African-American, said to be in his mid to late twenties, forced his way into the apartment and raped the 54 year-old tenant. The victim managed to strike the intruder with a heavy ashtray, leaving a large gash on his forehead.

As the rapist left the modest apartment where units rent from $250.00 to $285.00 a month (in red), he took his victim's cell phone and vehicle. Just six blocks away at the intersection of York Terrace and Almon Street (in blue), the intruder abandoned the Ford Taurus and presumably made his way from there on foot.

In early 2014, Colbert County authorities arrested Huntsville resident Tavares Terrell Garner. The then 28 year-old Garner had a record for Third Degree Burglary in Lawrence County and Third Degree Robbery in Colbert, resulting in two previous state incarcerations. 

In May 2014, Garner was brought to trial. He was convicted of First Degree Burglary, First Degree Robbery, and First Degree Rape. Due to his previous convictions, he was sentenced as a habitual offender and given three concurrent life sentences with a chance for parole.

Garner, now 40, is currently serving his sentences at the Fountain Correctional Facility in Atmore. He will be eligible for parole consideration in January 2029 - fifteen years into his sentence. It's expected that the Colbert County District Attorney's Office will protest any move to release Garner.