Case of
Jenny Wilcox and Robert Aldridge of Dayton, Ohio
Article culled from the
Witchhunt Mailing List. Opinions are those of the author.
Date: Thu, 7 Mar 1996 23:05:38 -0500
Reply-To: Martinyant@AOL.COM
Sender: Is there a child sex abuse witchhunt?
Here's more on the good news from Dayton. -- Martin Yant
By JAMES HANNAH
Associated Press Writer
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) -- A judge Thursday threw out the convictions of a
couple serving the 11th year of life sentences on child-molestation
charges and ordered a new trial.
Judge Richard Parrott said Robert Aldridge, 31, and Jennifer Wilcox, 35,
didn't get a fair trial because evidence favorable to them was not disclosed
by the government.
The suburban Dayton couple had asked that their convictions be thrown out
after three of the six children who testified against them in 1985 recanted
their testimony in 1994. The judge said he could not say whether the
recantations alone would warrant throwing out the convictikns.
Defense lawyer Jay Milano said he expects his clients to post bail and be
released. Prosecutors said the ruling probably will be appealed.
Wilcox and Aldridge were convicted in 1985 of multiple counts of rape and
gross sexual imposition involving children under 13. The children alleged
that the couple, who lived together in a Huber Heights apartment complex, was
involved in bizarre sex and nude photography.
During hearings before Parrott last month, three of the alleged victims
said Wilcox and Aldridge never had sex with them. The boys said they hal been
pressured into giving false statements. Defense lawyers said a court order
had barred them from interviewing the other alleged victims.
In his ruling, Parrott said evidence suggested that prosecutors had
received a 28-page report from police on the case but only provided defense
attorneys with eight pages.
The judge said the defense did not receive information that could have
helped them, including the results of medical exams that showed that none of
the girls showed any signs of sexual abuse.
The defense also wasn't told that a police interviewer threatened some on
the alleged victims when they initially denied that any sexual conduct had
occurred, Parrott said.
"I am relieved," Milano said. "Finally someone looked at this and did what
was right."
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> On Mon, 24 Mar 1997, Jenny Wilcox wrote:
> >
> > Hello. This is Jenny. Just a quick message from me. Thought you might
> > want an update about my case and situation for your web page, and I
> > wanted to say hi. After our convictions were overturned the prosecutors
> > appealed to the county appellate court--three judges heard the case and
> > all three voted in my favor. The last page of the decision was great
> > with two or three excellent quotes about the role of the prosecutors and
> > incarcerating the innocent etc. if you want to hear more? The decision
> > was handed down 3/14/97. Now, the prosecutors have 45 days to decide
> > what to do with me. Please email me if you want to know more. Jenny
> >
