Lawrence man charged with child rape after Amesbury teen's death

LAWRENCE, Mass. — A Lawrence man is now charged with child rape in connection to the death of a 13-year-old Amesbury teen who was dropped off at a hospital without a pulse.

Carlos Rivera, 47, faced multiple charges including indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 and distributing drugs to a minor. A charge of child rape was added Tuesday morning.

“I am reluctant to use the horrifying facts of this case to illustrate the necessity for immediate action to address the glaring loophole in the dangerousness statute, but I’m concerned about the public’s safety,” District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett said. “The law does not allow us to petition to court the hold a man accused of raping a 13-year old innocent girl but does allow us to file because he allegedly touched a 16-year-old girl inappropriately."

Rivera appeared in court Tuesday for a dangerousness hearing but was arraigned on aggravated rape of a child based on new evidence.

Officials said the Lawrence man allegedly brought Chloe Ricard to Lawrence General Hospital on May 20, where she was pronounced dead shortly after her arrival.

Chloe's body was later identified by family members after she was dropped off at the emergency room just before 5 p.m., officials said.

"From what one of the police officers said at the hospital, she was brought in and dumped at the hospital. They said she was lifeless. No pulse, no nothing, they just drove in and dropped her off," the girl's stepfather, Brian Dolan, told Boston 25 News. "She didn't even have a pulse when they pushed her out of the car."

Rivera's arrest raises more questions than answers for Chloe's family.

"You know, it's just hard," Dolan said. "I want more answers. This little kid was 13 years old and what were you doing with my daughter?"

Investigators determined Rivera was accompanied by a 16-year-old girl the day he brought Chloe to the hospital. Essex County DA's office stated in a release that Chloe and the other girl were at Rivera's Lawrence apartment at 59 Bellevue Street on the evening of May 19 and during most of the next day.

Police said they believe the two girls spent the night at Rivera's place.

The incident remains under investigation. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has not yet ruled on the cause and manner of Chloe's death.

Rivera was arraigned in Lawrence District Court.

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