North Philadelphia man sentenced for kidnapping, raping 11-year-old girl

Horace Battle lured two 11-year-old sisters inside his white SUV in February with the promise of a ride to their uncle’s home. Instead, he drove the girls to his North Philadelphia house, where he raped and imprisoned one until police officers broke down his door.

Battle, 47, pleaded guilty last month to charges of rape, kidnapping, and unlawful contact with a minor. And on Monday, District Attorney Larry Krasner announced that Court of Common Pleas Judge Donna Woelpper had sentenced Battle to up to 34 years in prison.

Krasner called the sentence, which could see Battle incarcerated until well into his 70s, “appropriately lengthy” for a repeat offender. In 2013, Battle pleaded guilty to raping another child and was sentenced to a maximum of 10 years in prison by Woelpper, court records show.

“He did a lot of harm,” Krasner said.

The two girls were walking on the side of a North Philadelphia street when Battle pulled beside them in his Chevrolet Equinox. The girls initially rebuffed his offer of a ride, said Allison Christian, the lead prosecutor in the case, but Battle insisted.

He drove them to his home in the 1600 block of West Lehigh Street, where he asked if either would like to use the restroom before continuing their drive, Christian said. One girl went inside, while the other remained in the vehicle — until she became overcome with worry and ran, Christian said, in search of an adult who could call the police.

With only a description of the vehicle and a general location, officers found Battle’s home and broke down the door. Inside, they found the other girl crying and begging for help, as Battle sat nearby in his boxers and a T-shirt, watching porn, Christian said.

The girl later told police Battle took her to a bedroom, duct-taped her mouth closed, and raped her. Afterward, she tried to flee, Christian said, but Battle wouldn’t let her.

The girl “had to go through the most incredible trauma we can think of — being abducted, held hostage and raped — but came out of it, as an 11-year-old, with the strength and the courage to tell her story,” the prosecutor said.

At Battle’s sentencing hearing last month, the girl’s victim impact statement was read aloud. “I don’t trust grown-ups anymore,” she said in part. “I feel nervous around men, even if they are nice. I always feel like something bad might happen again, and I hate that feeling. I wish I could go back to being the kid I was before, but I can’t.”

A spokesperson for the Defender’s Association, which represents Battle, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.