LAKE COUNTY — A jury found a Hidden Valley Lake man accused of rape not guilty Thursday.
John Wesley Dunn, 27, was arrested on Aug. 7, 2009 for charges of rape, kidnap with intent to commit rape and assault with the intent to commit rape.
“The jury saw and heard all the evidence and we are grateful to them for seeing through this?accuser and for finally vindicating Mr. Dunn with the not guilty verdict,” defense attorney Stephen Carter said. “They heard Mr. Dunn testify and they heard the accuser testify and they saw the truth of this case.”?
A 25-year-old woman from Hidden Valley Lake reported the incident to police on Aug. 1, 2009, the day after the incident allegedly occurred. The woman claimed she did not remember anything that happened because she was too intoxicated after drinking alcohol the previous night. She later contacted police following her young child”s birthday and reported it as a rape.
When initially arrested and charged, Dunn faced life in prison. Despite the bail amount of $350,000, he was released on his own recognizance after dozens of supporters from the community attended his bail hearing and 15 people testified to his good character.
During a preliminary hearing in December 2009, a judge ruled the prosecution had insufficient evidence to proceed with the kidnapping and assault charges, reducing the case to one count of rape.
Police and prosecutor Ed Borg claimed Twin Pine Casino video surveillance showed Dunn carrying the accuser to his car. Carter argued that the woman and Dunn walked to his car after he carried her a short way, at her request, because her feet hurt from dancing in heels all night and she had removed her shoes. The jury viewed the video during its deliberations. The defense claimed the sex was consensual while the prosecution argued the woman was too intoxicated to consent to sex. Carter said the woman was unable to recall having sex or whether she had asked to have sex with Dunn. The two had known each other as casual friends prior to the incident, Carter said. “Is it rape when two intoxicated people have sexual relations?” Carter asked the jury. “If so, how is it determined which one raped the other? Dunn should have never been arrested or charged with anything. This case is?government overreaching at its absolute worst.”
“Trying to label a person a ?rapist” is a very serious thing,” Carter said. “Trying to send him to prison for eight years for something like this is nothing short of ridiculous. The evidence was just not there for anything resembling rape; Dunn had no record and had character witnesses and evidence that he is a valuable member of the community.”
Dunn was the assistant golf pro at the Hidden Valley Lake Golf Club at the time but lost his job as a result of the arrest, Carter said. Dunn”s father also reportedly lost his job as a result of the case ? the two men share the same name. Dunn spent three weeks in jail at the beginning of the case.
