Will verdict stand in the high-profile Vanderbilt rape case?
WKRN web staff Published: June 14, 2015, 5:15 pm Updated: June 15, 2015, 4:32 pm cst
During Monday’s hearing, defense attorney Worrick Robinson outlined the case that jury foreman Todd Easter should have revealed during jury selection that he was a victim of sexual abuse.
Easter acknowledged that as a teen he was involved with an adult man in Sumner County who went to prison because of the incident. Easter attended the hearing in the company of his lawyer and took the stand.
The defense pointed out that Easter sat through two days of jury selection in which jurors were asked about 104 qualifying questions since he was the last juror selected.
(snip)
In response to the defense’s claims, prosecutors said Monday during the hearing that Easter did not consider himself a victim, saying if his previous case did not have a question of age of consent he would not have been considered a victim in the eyes of the state of Tennessee.
Their words echo a motion filed late last week by the prosecution saying Easter considered the 2000 sexual relationship in question to be consensual.
The defense then quoted portions of a victim impact statement by Easter’s mother that was filed during his case. His mother had described him as “scared,” but Easter stated he was instead just “heartbroken.”
“I feel like I was asked if I considered myself a victim, and I said no,” he said when asked about his jury selection.
much more at link:
http://wkrn.com/2015/06/14/will-verdict-stand-in-the-high-profile-vanderbilt-rape-case/
Todd Easter testifying in court June 15, 2015
Brandon Vandenburg (L) and Cory Batey (R) in court on June 15