Homeless man Bradley Howe was sentenced to 18 years in state prison in Maine for sexually assaulting a social worker who provided assistance to homeless people, according to this article in the Portland Press Herald.

“He attacked her at the time she was doing this valuable and compassionate work. The assault has had a profound effect on her life.” District Attorney Geoffrey Rushlau said.

Howe previously served five years in prison for a rape committed in 1982.

There have been several reports in recent months of social workers assaulted or even killed on the job. The National Association of Social Workers’ Center for Workforce Studies and the Center for Health Workforce Studies at the University at Albany did a survey that found that four out of 10 social workers face personal safety issues on the job. To learn more about that study, click here.