Charges dismissed in Kellogg rape case
WALLACE — A rape charge filed earlier this month against a Kellogg man has been dismissed after prosecutors received additional information indicating the sexual contact at issue was consensual, according to court records.
Shoshone County prosecutors Oct. 20 filed a motion seeking dismissal of a felony rape charge against Damian Reed, stating they had received information that "the sexual contact between the defendant and the reporting party was consensual." Prosecutors further stated that, with the new information, the state did not believe it could prove the charge beyond a reasonable doubt.
On Oct. 21, Magistrate Judge Keisha Oxendine granted the state's request and ordered the case dismissed. The order also directed that any bond be exonerated and any outstanding warrants be quashed.
The dismissal came less than a week after Reed was charged with one count of rape, a felony, stemming from an alleged incident reported to law enforcement earlier this month.
According to previous court filings, investigators alleged that Reed engaged in sexual intercourse with a woman without her consent. Based on the information available at the time, prosecutors filed the charge following a law enforcement investigation.
"It has now come to our attention, through additional text message threads between the female and Reed, that they were engaged in a relationship of a sexual nature, with the two discussing plans and desires to have intercourse in the days leading up to October 11," Britney Jacobs, chief deputy prosecutor for Shoshone County, said.
"Therefore, the State cannot proceed further with the case as alleged, given the additional information we have now learned that the sexual contact appears to have been consensual and not forced upon her as she described," Jacobs said.
According to Jacobs, the text messages that ultimately led to the dismissal were not provided to investigators during the initial investigation and were presented only after Reed was appointed a public defender.
"While the circumstances here are unfortunate, these types of cases are in the minority, with the bulk of the cases we see come through our office involving victims who have truly experienced violent and/or nonconsensual sexual acts, which is why officers in this case swiftly took action when they learned the information about Reed from this female," Jacobs said.
Under Idaho law, prosecutors bear the burden of proving criminal charges beyond a reasonable doubt. Prosecutors said the newly obtained information prevented them from meeting that burden.
Reed