Two men cleared of rape charges after jury deliberates for one hour

Deshaune Clarke and a tearful Ashaunie Davis, who were 17 and 16, respectively, at the time of the alleged incident, were acquitted on Friday after the seven-member jury deliberated for approximately one hour.

According to the allegations, on October 13, 2021, the complainant was taken from her home by the two accused men and carried to Clarke’s house against her will. Prosecutors alleged that while she screamed for help, the men covered her mouth and took turns sexually assaulting her.

However, both men denied the allegations and maintained that the sexual encounters were consensual. The defence argued that the complainant only reported the matter after members of the community became aware of her relationship with the men.

During the trial, the complainant’s testimony came under intense scrutiny, as several inconsistencies in her account were highlighted during cross-examination.

Under cross-examination, the complainant admitted that some time after the alleged incident, she gave Clarke an iPhone and bus fare to travel out of town to report to a police station.

The complainant also admitted that before making the report, she was very upset that her sexual encounter with the two men had been circulating in the community.

The jury also heard that before the incident, the complainant and Davis had a sexual encounter.

The defence also challenged several aspects of the complainant’s account relating to the alleged abduction and the sequence of events surrounding the reported assault, which the complainant had difficulty remembering.

Following the trial judge’s summation, the jury returned not-guilty verdicts in favour of both men.

Attorney-at-law Richard Lynch represented Clarke, while Davis was represented by Zandra-Gay Francis.

tanesha.mundle@gleanerjm.com