Judge denies move of former officer’s rape trial
UNIONTOWN (AP) – A judge has denied a bid to move the trial of a former Western Pennsylvania police officer accused of having raped a drug informant as he threatened to file new charges against her.
Forty-four-year-old Ryan Reese worked for the Connellsville police department in 2011, when Westmoreland County authorities allege that he raped the woman after finding heroin and drug paraphernalia while visiting her home.
The (Uniontown) Herald-Standard reports that prosecutors had sought to move the trial to Fayette County, where Reese formerly headed the county drug task force and faces similar charges involving another woman.
The defense argued that the cases were separate and the trial shouldn’t be moved, and the judge agreed.
Reese’s attorney argues that his accusers had ulterior motives in bringing the accusations.