Note: This story contains graphic content and accounts of sexual assault that may be disturbing to some readers.
A former Idaho lawmaker accused of raping a Statehouse intern during the 2021 legislative session took the stand in his own defense Thursday morning, testifying that the 19-year-old never gave any indication that she did not consent to the sexual encounter.
Aaron von Ehlinger, 39, is charged with felony rape and felony penetration with a foreign object.
The intern, identified only as Jane Doe, told police that von Ehlinger had raped her in his downtown Boise apartment after they went out to dinner together, penetrating her with his finger and forcing her to perform oral sex, despite her telling him "no" and saying that she did not want to do it.
Von Ehlinger denied that version of events, saying on the stand that he never put his finger inside the young woman and that he asked "do you want to" before she willingly performed oral sex on him.
"She never once gave me any indication that she did not want to participate in this," he said.
Von Ehlinger, a Republican from Juliaetta who resigned his seat in the Idaho House a month after Jane Doe went to police, also denied that the 19-year-old had said "no," told him her was hurting her, or asked him to stop. At one point, she told him she was not on birth control and that "tonight is probably not a good night to have sex," and he did not push the issue, he said.
The woman told a sexual assault nurse that von Ehlinger kneeled on top of her, pinning her arms down with his knees before ejaculating onto her, but von Ehlinger said he was not holding her down when that happened, and that the woman had never seemed "frozen" or paralyzed during the encounter.
"That's impossible, she participated in the whole thing physically," he said.
Prosecutors urged the jurors to focus on the power differences between von Ehlinger and the intern, to whom he gave cookies and his personal cell phone number before asking her on a date.
Jane Doe "was never a willing participant" in what happened the night of March 9, 2021, Prosecutor Katelyn Farley said, and signaled her discomfort in her actions and excuses before outright telling von Ehlinger to stop.
"She didn't want to be there," Farley said. "She didn't want his penis anywhere near her mouth."
Farley accused the suspect of changing his story about what happened, questioning his assertion that he spent ten minutes taking off his clothes and putting them away piece by piece in the middle of a "passionate" encounter, and suggesting he was not telling the truth about whether he was carrying a handgun that night.
She also asked the jury to consider Jane Doe's change in demeanor after that night and why she had a documented "goose egg" on the back of her head if she had not pulled away from von Ehlinger, smacking her head into the wall, as she said.
"There is no gray area," she said. "Unfortunately, this happened. [Jane Doe] was raped by the defendant."
Defense attorney Jon Cox argued in his closing statements that the prosecution had fallen far short of proving von Ehlinger's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
"You have heard from one person of the two people that were in that room," he said, adding that von Ehlinger gave a "plausible and reasonable explanation" for what happened.
Jane Doe took the stand briefly Wednesday afternoon, but bolted from the room mid-testimony. Judge Michael Reardon instructed the jurors they cannot consider what she said during their deliberations because the defense did not have the chance to ask her questions before she left.
"You should treat that incident as if she never came into the court," Reardon told jurors.
Cox asked jurors to reject the argument that von Ehlinger held power over Jane Doe because of his position as a lawmaker.
"There is no evidence of a power differential," he said. "There is nothing against the law about a 38-year-old dating a 19-year-old."
Closing arguments wrapped up and the jury began their deliberation shortly before 1 p.m.
If convicted, von Ehlinger faces up to life in prison and mandatory registration as a sex offender.
8 сен 2024
