A Dryden sexual assault convict who has spent two years in prison will get a new trial, after a mid-level appeals court questioned Thursday a prospective juror's impartiality.
Jeffrey Horton, 55, had been sentenced to 12 years behind bars in July 2016 after being convicted in Tompkins County Court of beating, raping and stalking a woman he had been in a relationship with for about eight months in March 2015. Part of Horton's effort to appeal the conviction included arguments he was deprived of a fair trial based on a pre-existing relationship between a prospective juror and one of the prosecution's witnesses.
Although the appeals court reversed Horton's conviction and ordered a new trial due to the juror issue, the judges stated evidence against him had been enough to support a guilty verdict.
IthacaJournal.com:
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