The student who said she was raped in her De Neve dorm room
nearly two years ago was consistent with her story from the first
trial during testimony at the retrial Wednesday and Thursday, said
her attorney Scott Millington.
A jury was hung over four months ago when DeShawn Stringer,
Chuwan Anthony and Jamar Dawson were tried for raping the student
in her room on Dec. 5, 2002.
During the first trial, Jane Doe, the name the court is using to
protect the identity of the alleged victim, told jurors she said
“no” to sexual advances from defendant Stringer.
Millington said Jane Doe stayed true to this story during Wednesday
and Thursday’s testimony.
Because the jury did not give a conclusive verdict during the
first trial, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s
office can retry the defendants.
Jane Robison, a spokeswoman for the district attorney’s
office, announced in June that they would only prosecute Stringer a
second time. At the end of the first trial, Stringer received a
vote of six guilty, six not guilty on charges of forced rape, and
seven guilty, five not guilty on charges of forced oral sex.
Millington opened his case Tuesday by trying to paint Stringer
as a man who has a pattern of assaulting women ““ a charge the
defense denies.
The first witness the prosecution called was Maryzela Casillas,
a woman who had allegedly been sexually assaulted by Stringer in
2000.
Jane Doe testified third, after Casillas and Jane Doe’s
roommate at the time of the incident.
Jane Doe took the stand first Tuesday afternoon and began
telling jurors about the stress she was under to turn in a final
paper she had been writing before the encounter.
“It was very hectic because I had three finals (and) all
these papers to write,” Jane Doe said. “(I) had to
scramble to finish everything.”
During the last trial, the defense criticized Jane Doe because
she turned in the paper and went to class after the alleged
encounter instead of going straight to the police.
Millington said Gail Abarbanel, the director of the Santa Monica
Rape Treatment Center, will testify that Jane Doe’s behavior
resulted from “frozen fright” and was consistent of
that of a rape victim.
The prosecution will likely rest and let the defense present its
case sometime early next week, Millington said.
Frank Williams, Stringer’s attorney, said whether Jane Doe
said “no” is her word against that of his client, and
that it is also necessary to explore facts surrounding the
encounter.
Jane Doe’s actions during and after the incident
don’t make sense, Williams said, noting that she turned in
her paper, got a morning-after pill and went to class before going
to the police.
“If the victim’s actions made sense, why would you
need someone (like Abarbanel) to translate these actions?”
Williams said.
Stringer faces a maximum penalty of 12 years in state prison if
convicted.