Jury trial for alleged rape incident begins

The first day of the trial for defendant Justin Koontz took place Tuesday.

Koontz, 25, is facing a charge of Level 3 felony after an occurrence that reportedly happened Oct. 19, 2014.

Upon selection of the jury, Chief Deputy Prosecutor Keven McIntosh called the alleged victim to the stand to begin examination.

The victim stated she was living with a friend and would often frequent the home of Koontz after work, as she was a friend of the defendant’s wife.

During examination by McIntosh, the victim stated she would go to the Koontz residence after work because it was easier than going home and she was always invited by the defendant’s wife. She added if she was at the residence, there was always a third party present and she was never alone with Koontz.

The night of the alleged incident, the victim stated she had been drinking cookie dough flavored vodka in order to “look cool and seem more mature.” She said she rarely drank as well, doing it only every once in a great while.

The victim stated after finishing just under half of the bottle of vodka from the offer of Koontz, Koontz started rubbing her feet while the three of them were in the living room with one of Koontz’s children. She didn’t believe Koontz’s wife was aware of his actions, as it was taking place under a blanket. The victim also stated she eventually passed out on the couch, where she usually sleeps.

“I woke up to Justin standing above me,” the victim said. “I remember being touched under my bra and around my vagina, then he put his penis inside me.”

The victim said she was scared during the incident, as she couldn’t move and couldn’t breathe before blacking out. The victim stated when she came too, Koontz’s penis was in her mouth.

“It’s like I was choking,” she said.

When asked if she ever encouraged Koontz for sexual relations, the victim denied any interest in him. She also said she never took any of her own clothes off during the incident and never consented to sexual intercourse.

“It’s mostly still clear in my mind. I think about it all the time,” she said. “I felt disgusting, and I didn’t feel like I could talk about it because it felt like I had done something wrong. I was ashamed because I had wanted to save myself until marriage and that I had lost something I had held onto for so long.”

The victim stated she didn’t talk to the defendant or his wife after the incident.

During cross examination by public defender Ellen Martin, the victim stated she didn’t tell the defendant’s wife about the incident because she didn’t think she would believe her. The defense identified several differences between the victim’s initial statement with police from the probable cause and her deposition as well, such as times of the day and where she went after work.

Martin also asked about a Protective Order the victim filed for, stating the victim stated at the time she was “fighting and hoping it didn’t happen.”

McIntosh then called Marvin Holt of the Bloomfield Police Department to the stand. Holt was the investigating officer for the incident.

According to Holt, the victim was hesitant to talk to police initially, stating she was upset about the alleged incident. Holt stated during the investigation, he believes he tried to contact Koontz and was unable to do so for several days after the incident. He applied for a search warrant, which was granted, and upon serving the warrant, recovered the said vodka bottle, the blanket that covered the victim and several couch cushions. All were logged into evidence.

Holt added during his time at the residence, Koontz’s wife was uncooperative and seemed confused.

Photographs were taken of the residence, though Holt stated they had been misplaced and lost since the incident.

The jury was shown the audio and video recording of Holt’s interview with Koontz, taking place Oct. 21, 2014.

During the interview, Koontz stated he did not have sexual relations with the victim “as far as he knew.” Koontz told Holt the victim was being drunk and loud, as she had retrieved the vodka and drank it before he had gotten home. Koontz also stated the victim yanked him on top of her and he had pushed her away. Koontz added the victim took her pants off by herself and claimed several times during the interview that nothing had happened.

Holt stated he took a sample of Koontz’s DNA after the interview. Samples with matching DNA had been obtained from the victim’s underwear and a cervical swab from her sexual assault test.

During cross examination, Martin asked Holt why he hadn’t interviewed Koontz’s wife. Holt responded he thought it was unnecessary and potential evidence from her interview could be contaminated. The defense also asked why polygraph results from Koontz were stipulated, to which Holt replied he was under advisement to do so in order to have them used in court.

The trial will resume Wednesday with three more witnesses planned to be called to the stand.