The article about the neighbor who heard suspicious sounds has a lot of opinion in it. How anyone knows that the rapist was "spooked" by the neighbor is beyond me. That is absolutely a presumption. If LE stated this, it's to build a base for attempted murder, IMO, as it gives the appearance that the only reason, the victim was not killed was because he was interrupted. For all anyone knows, the rapist might not have even been aware of the neighbor, and he may had no intent to kill his victim. To prove that this is attempeted murder is going to be an uphill fight, IMO. JM is s big strong guy and he could have snapped her neck if he so desired.
The DNA evidence appears very strong to me. The big issue comes down to whether the victim will indeed come forward and testify. LE and the DA's office often have made that claim even as they know that the victim is not going to show up, in order to get the perp to plead guilty or deal It comes down to a game of "chicken" because if the victim backs down and doesn't testify, the case can go down the tubes. On the other hand, it's a huge issue for the defense, since if the victim does show up, the chances for a conviction sky rocket and it's very doubtful JM will walk on this one. It can go right down to the wire on this one.
I hope the victim does show up and nail JM. However, until it happens, I remain dubious that she will do so.