Nov 16, 2009 8:16 pm US/Eastern
Woman Claims Ex-NYPD Detective Drugged, Raped Her
Accuser Says Sex Could Not Have Been Consensual Because She's A Lesbian
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
A retired NYPD detective is on trial in Westchester for allegedly drugging and raping a woman.
On Monday, the woman gave tearful testimony that revealed that she is a lesbian, which could have a huge impact on the trial.
The 31-year-old woman testified that 47-year-old former NYPD Detective Jose Arroyo drugged her at a bar, took her to a motel in Westchester, and sexually assaulted her.
Defense lawyers argue that Arroyo is innocent, and the woman wanted to have sex. The woman says that the sex could not have been consensual, because she is gay.
The woman's sexual orientation is considered a bombshell in the case, and it has some legal experts taking extra interest in the trial.
"If in the mind of one of the jurors is the issue of credibility of the victim, because, for example, her sexual orientation, that may create a scintilla of doubt and free the defendant," legal expert Mark Jay Hellman said.
The case started a year ago at Doyle's Pub in the Bronx. The woman and her partner were there to wait out heavy traffic en route to Manhattan. The woman testified she met the man and bought him a shot because he said it was his birthday.
She testified that she grew annoyed with him and said to him, "I don't like boys."
Prosecutors say bar security video appears to show a man putting something in her drink.
The woman's girlfriend briefly left the bar and when she returned, her partner was gone.
Part of the former detective's defense is that the woman left the pub willingly, but she says she was drugged.
The woman said she blacked out for 12 hours, after which she awoke in the motel room, severely bruised and disoriented, with a man she identified as Arroyo.
She took his keys and tried to flee, but a hotel clerk called cops when they saw her trying to open car doors in the parking lot.
Hellman says the woman's sexuality might actually hurt her case with jurors.
"They may discount a lot of her testimony – not just the consent, but other issues," Hellman said.
Arroyo is also accused of taking explicit photos of the unconscious woman and showing them to others. He is free on $100,000 bond as the trial continues.
The pub's bartender and the alleged victim's girlfriend are expected to testify later in the rape trial.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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