Neighbors in Woodbridge, Virginia, gathered Tuesday night to voice concerns about safety in their community after two women were killed.
About 50 people showed up to the meeting and said they were concerned about their safety despite a suspect in police custody who has confessed to the deaths.
Ronald Francis Dorsey, of Woodbridge, is charged with two counts of murder in the deaths of Erica Janelle Hickson, 37, and Lizeth Yadira Lopez, 36. Hickson and Lopez worked for Youth Quest Independent Living in the 12300 block of Pond Run Drive in Woodbridge, where Dorsey was enrolled in a program.
That counseling program will be shutting down, according to Youth Quest Independent Living.
Ruth Anderson, the Occoquan District supervisor for Prince William County, organized the meeting to give residents the chance to hear from the police chief and social services. She said safety is first and foremost in the minds of the surrounding neighborhood.
"Questions like, why? Why didn’t we know more after the first murder? Why are organizations like this in our community?” Anderson said. “It’s sad for the Occoquan District. It’s sad for Prince William County. It’s definitely sad for the families of these young ladies."
Residents asked police why Dorsey wasn't arrested after being questioned in the death of Lopez in April. Police said there was not enough evidene to arrest him at that time.
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"There was nothing saying what details of what was going on," said resident Jeffrey Ross. "It was really, really quiet. All of a sudden, the second person died, and it's a shame somebody else had to die.
People also asked for police to provide self-defense classes.
In court documents, investigators said Dorsey confessed to assaulting both women with the intent of raping them. Police said Hickson was held for 30 minutes and Lopez was held for 20 minutes by Dorsey before he said he killed them and concealed their remains.
Staff members at the complex reported Hickson went missing at some point during her shift during the early morning hours on Aug. 5, police said. Police found her body later that afternoon in a wooded area near Golf Side Circle, which is the same area where the suspect lives, police said.
On April 29, Lopez's body was discovered near a drainage ditch in the area of Cotton Mill Drive and Griffith Avenue in Woodbridge, not far from where Hickson's body was found, police said. Lopez was reported missing on April 19.
Dorsey has a court appearance scheduled for Oct. 3. Youth Quest Independent Living is a program affiliated with Richmond-based Intercept Youth Services.
