We've been tracking the Colorado sexual assault case against former Denver Bronco Perrish Cox for some time now, and the high-profile case has finally come to its end. In the most recent update about this case, we noted that a witness for the prosecution shared a supposed detail about the September night when the rape allegedly happened. He claimed that Cox had picked the victim up over his shoulders and announced that she "was ready" before taking her into his room -- where the sexual assault allegedly occurred
Despite that testimony, however, the criminal trial has ended favorably for Cox. Neither that testimony nor the other evidence provided by the prosecution was enough to sway the jury into believing there was no doubt that rape had taken place. Cox was found not guilty of the criminal charges, and the jury foreman has come forward to share why the jury ruled the way that it did.
According to the foreman, he and the other jurors didn't doubt that Cox and the woman had had sex on the night in question. The woman had become pregnant and a DNA test reportedly proved that Cox was the father of the baby. But believing that sex occurred didn't mean to the jury that it must have been rape.
The specific charges brought against Cox were sexual assault while the victim was physically helpless and sexual assault while the victim was incapable of determining the nature of the conduct. Therefore, more needed to be proven than that sex had occurred. The jury found Cox not guilty because they felt that the prosecution failed to prove that the supposed victim was physically helpless or that Cox knew that she was physically helpless.
The foreman emphasizes that coming to the not guilty verdicts was not easy. But it is a jury's responsibility to make a decision based on the proof -- or lack of proof -- that is presented before them in court.
When any allegation of rape is made, the public tends to immediately become emotional and desperate to find someone guilty of the charge. This criminal trial is an example of how a jury should function in order to preserve the ideal of justice in this country.
Source
9News.com: "Perrish Cox jury foreman: 'A lot of us were frustrated,'" Anastasiya Bolton, Mar. 6, 2012
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