photo by: Mike Yoder

The Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, 111 E. 11th St.

One of two former Haskell Indian Nations University students accused of rape told jurors on Friday that the woman accusing them willingly engaged in sex acts with them.

The defendant, age 20, said the woman entered the dormitory room he shared with the second suspect, age 21, in the early-morning hours of Nov. 15, 2014. The woman, the two men and several others had been drinking and partying the night before and into that morning, he said.

In the dormitory room, the 20-year-old defendant testified, the woman engaged in a sex act with him before moving to the other man’s bed. At that point, the 20-year-old said he left the room to allow them some privacy.

Police later found the 20-year-old asleep in his car after the woman reported she was raped, according to earlier testimony in the trial.

The two men were arrested that day. The trial for the 20-year-old began Monday. He faces two felony counts of rape and one felony count of aggravated criminal sodomy.

The 21-year-old faces felony counts of aiding and abetting attempted rape and two counts of rape; his trial is scheduled to begin July 25.

The woman’s testimony, offered to jurors on Tuesday, directly conflicts with the 20-year-old defendant’s story.

On the morning in question, the woman said she and the two suspects were left alone in their room, which wasn’t out of the ordinary because they were friends who had known each other for years.

At one point, however, the 21-year-old man stood up, turned off the lights and locked the door, she testified. He then began to kiss her, something she testified she didn’t want.

When she called for help, the 20-year-old rose from his bed and held her down, she said. The two then raped her, she said.

Evidence presented throughout the trial showed the woman’s DNA was detected on the genitals of both suspects and on a used condom found inside their dorm room.

The prosecution rested its case Thursday. The defense then called several witnesses to the stand, including the 20-year-old defendant on Friday.

The defense’s witnesses, which included a private investigator and a forensic scientist, independently examined the investigative techniques of the Lawrence Police Department and staff members at Lawrence Memorial Hospital and the Kansas Bureau of Investigations.

Private investigator Chalcea Helm told jurors during her examination of Lawrence police reports regarding the incident that she found that several witness interviews that she would consider important were not conducted until months after the morning in question.

When asked by prosecutor Catherine Decena, Helm also told jurors she had no prior law enforcement training and had been working as a private investigator for less than a year.

After the defense rested Friday, attorneys offered closing arguments.

Prosecutor Mark Simpson urged jurors to look at the big picture drawn by witness testimony, arguing that many of their basic details matched up.

Defense Attorney Sarah Swain, however, called investigators’ tactics into question and highlighted several points where witness testimony differed.

When asked whether they conducted certain interviews or collected physical evidence, many officers responded with “I didn’t do it, but I’m sure somebody else did,” Swain said.

However, Simpson said whatever jurors might think of the investigation, and despite any differences in testimony, the evidence still supported the criminal charges.

“Do you expect everything to be like a script, perfectly matched up?” he asked. “What would that tell you?”

After closing arguments jurors adjourned to the deliberation room. After nearly two and a half hours of discussion Friday afternoon, the group had yet to reach a unanimous decision and decided to adjourn until 9 a.m. Monday.