Jun 24, 2013 2 min read

Prosecutors said they plan to retry a South Carolina man accused of sexually assaulting two young girls after the jury announced late Friday afternoon that it was deadlocked.

The jury notified Common Pleas Judge John DiSalle about 3:30 p.m. Friday that they could not reach a verdict against William R. Strauch after the four-day trial.

Strauch, 50, of Bluffton, S.C., was facing multiple charges of aggravated indecent assault, indecent exposure, indecent assault and corruption of minors after Canonsburg police said he assaulted two young girls more than a decade ago.

Traci McDonald, the deputy district attorney who prosecuted the case, said one juror seemed to have an “agenda to express his displeasure with the (legal) system” and would not agree to anything during deliberations despite the rest of the them settling on guilty verdicts. Other jurors told her the man took contrary positions to the rest of them on every issue, even if his positions contradicted one another.

“It’s really sad, actually,” McDonald said. “It became almost impossible for them to sway his opinion.”

Strauch was arrested last October and accused of exposing himself and fondling the two girls. One girl told police she was 10 or 11 years old when the first incident took place, and the assaults occurred between 1999 and 2002. The other accuser told police that the sexual abuse started when she was 3 or 4 years old.

McDonald said both prosecutors and the accusers are preparing for a retrial, although they are still open to a plea deal. McDonald said she is disappointed that the accusers and their families will probably have to go through the emotions of another trial.

“Right now, the family wants to proceed to a retrial,” McDonald said. “This process is exhausting.”

McDonald thinks the retrial could occur in July or September, depending on other trial dates and witness schedules.

Strauch remains free on $25,000 cash bond. Strauch’s lawyer, Noah Geary, could not be reached for comment on the case.