Castro victims raped repeatedly

The doctor who saw three women after they were freed from captivity testified Thursday in Cleveland they showed evidence of having been "raped repeatedly." Dr. Gerald Maldny, an emergency room physician, testified at a sentencing hearing for kidnapper Ariel Castro. Maldny said the three "related information regarding sexual assaults. All three were raped vaginally ... multiple, repeated times." The doctor said one of the victims was covered in bruises. "All three of them looked very gaunt. All three of them said they were allowed very little time outside," he added. Castro plead guilty earlier to holding three women captive in his Cleveland home for a decade, and apologized to his victims Thursday. "I would like to apologize to the victims," Castro, 53, said at the opening of his sentencing hearing. At least one of his victims -- Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight -- is also expected to speak. Security at the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court has been tightened, officials said. When he entered a guilty plea to 937 counts of a 977-count indictment last week, Castro told Judge Michael J. Russo about his "addiction to pornography" and his "sexual problem" before Russo cut him off. Castro's guilty plea Friday included two charges of aggravated murder for terminating the pregnancy of one of his captives. The plea deal, giving him life in prison without parole plus 1,000 years, spares him from the death penalty. Russo was expected to accept the deal, The New York Times said. Court documents filed Wednesday describe the women's terrible conditions during their captivity. The document, provided by WEWS-TV, Cleveland, can be found at tinyurl.com/UPI-Sentencing-Memorandum. Some of its content may be disturbing. Castro abducted Berry, DeJesus and Knight separately over two years starting in 2002, authorities say. The young women were rescued after Berry kicked in a screen door and yelled to neighbors for help. A 6-year-old girl, Berry's daughter fathered by Castro, was also rescued. As part of the plea agreement with prosecutors, Castro would forfeit his home and his savings. Prosecutors said his home would be demolished soon.