Jury begins deliberations in rape trial

LANCASTER – After three days of testimony, a workplace sexual assault case involving two women and the man accused of molesting them came to a close Thursday afternoon.

Now the case, and ultimately 40-year-old Lawrence B. Stinnett's fate, rests in the hands of a jury, which began deliberations just before 5:30 p.m. Thursday.

"This was not a stolen moment as they snuck off as lovers into the back office," said Fairfield County Assistant Prosecutor Zoe Lamberson as she made closing arguments to jurors.

Both alleged sexual assault victims testified throughout the trial, making similar accusations against Stinnett, including that he had falsely portrayed himself as their supervisor and brought each of them to a back room of Green Gourmet Foods in Baltimore on Sept. 10 under false pretenses.

There, they testified Stinnett held them against their will and touched them inappropriately. The first woman, however, alleged the sexual activity went a step further than touching, with Stinnett allegedly forcing her to perform oral sex.

Jurors heard in Stinnett's own words that these acts had happened, but that they were completely consensual.

"He said he did," Lamberson said about Stinnett's admission in a police recorded interview, which jurors heard a one-hour portion of Thursday.

"That's not the dispute," she continued, adding that what is disputed is whether Stinnett used "force or threat of force."

The women repeatedly testified they did not want Stinnett to do any of the things they accused him of doing while posing as their supervisor. However, he was a laborer hired just a month before they were, according to court testimony.

At first, while talking with police, Stinnett only admitted to one encounter in the room, officials said. Investigators called him out for lying, saying they already knew about the second woman.

Stinnett reportedly said he first lied about some of the activity because he was scared.

"I know how this (expletive) looks," he told them. "I am scared."

Throughout the recorded interview, Stinnett flipped the names of the women, not remembering who was who.

Largely, Stinnett made similar statements to investigators about what had occurred, except to say they had wanted to take part. He did say he initiated the first incident.

"I might've kissed her first," he told investigators in the recorded interview.

He later admitted one of them had asked to stop and he did, but it was unclear to which woman he was referring.

"Not once did I threaten anybody," he said. "Not once did I hold anyone against their will."

In addition to the police recording, jurors also heard Stinnett, in a jailhouse call, tell his friend that "(prosecutors) could get me on the abduction." Stinnett's attorney Scott Wood objected to jurors hearing this information, but Fairfield County Judge Richard E. Berens ultimately ruled it was admissible because the abduction charge was never part of a plea negotiation by prosecutors. Instead, Berens ruled it could be a look into Stinnett's own reasoning about what had occurred.

He also reportedly told his friend in the call that the abduction charge was possible because the door to his office was shut when the incidents occurred. However, testimony has shown the door was not shut and that room isn't Stinnett's office.

As a result of the allegations, Stinnett is facing 10 felony charges, including rape, kidnapping and gross sexual imposition.

Wood also had an opportunity to leave a lasting impression on the jury, asking members to look beyond the state's allegations and look at the women's possible motives to lie to police. He gave the jury two reasons: one, the first woman became jealous when Stinnett had taken the second woman back to the room for a sexual encounter, or two, the first woman was seeking financial gain.

The first woman had already testified she had retained a lawyer to seek a civil lawsuit against Green Gourmet Foods, where the alleged acts occurred. However, she denied the lawsuit as being a motive and said she enjoyed no part of the ordeal.

Wood also highlighted that the women did not resist, did not have torn clothing and were not injured.

The defense called one witness to testify, a co-worker who was hired the same day as the two women, which was three days before the alleged assault. The co-worker testified the two women flirted back and forth with Stinnett, which goes against the first woman's testimony that she had not reciprocated his "inappropriate comments."

Stinnett did not testify on his own behalf.

Chief Assistant Prosecutor Jeffrey Hunter rebutted Wood's remarks to jurors, saying that no matter what, they will have to answer why Stinnett would have to lie to get the women back in the room if the sex was consensual. In Stinnett's recording to police, he matched the women's statements about why they went to the back room to begin with.

Hunter went on to say that if jurors bring back a not guilty verdict, they must answer that question.

The jury will continue deliberations Friday morning in Berens' court room until a verdict is reached.

sroush@lancastereaglegazette.com

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Twitter: @SpencerRoushLEG