Summary: Attorney Vincent A. Cirillo of Norristown, PA wants a judge to dismiss his rape conviction.
A Pennsylvania lawyer convicted of raping his unconscious client has asked the judge to throw out his conviction. A week before his sentencing, Vincent A. Cirillo Jr. asked a Montgomery County Court judge to void his conviction due to trial “errors” and the “insufficiency of the evidence,” according to The Times Herald.
Cirillo, 57, was accused of going to the apartment of his female client, 22, in 2015 and raping her when she was passed out drunk. For the incident, Cirillo had pled guilty in 2016 to a single charge of rape, which would have had a 10 to 20-year sentence, but he had withdrawn his plea shortly after. Because of his withdrawal, the prosecutor stated that Cirillo should face a state prison sentence that is more than what he would’ve gotten if he had pleaded out.
In February, a jury found Cirillo guilty after six hours of deliberation, and he was charged with rape of an unconscious person, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with an unconscious person, sexual assault, and unsworn falsification.
During the trial, jurors were subjected to emotional testimony from the accuser and her family as well as unsavory photographs of the alleged victim that Cirillo had taken when she was passed out. Cirillo’s attorney, Nino V. Tinari said that the conviction “was against the weight of the evidence” and that the photographs were “prejudicial.”
After the encounter between Cirillo and his client, she and he texted, and in those texts, the lawyer acknowledged that they had sex. The client had also gone to the police, and investigators set up a sting. The client invited Cirillo back to her home, and she recorded their conversation. Again, he admitted to having sex with her, and he also told her how to avoid pregnancy and STDs.
When confronted about the sexual assault by the police, Cirillo denied having sex with his client, despite his admission on the tapes. These recordings were heard by members of the jury during trial.
“She had no memory of what happened for the remainder of the night. Although she had no specific recollection, she suspected she may have been sexually assaulted by Cirillo after blacking out,” said Detective Sgt. Michael McGettigan. “The victim stated to investigators that she did not consent to any sexual contact with Cirillo.”
During the trial, the jury of six men and six women heard Cirillo give his account of that night, and unlike his statement to the police, he admitted to having sex but he said that it was consensual.
Cirillo is now sitting in jail, waiting for his May 8 sentencing hearing before Judge Steven T. O’Neill. According to The Times Herald, it is unclear if O’Neill will grant Cirillo’s request for a new trial.
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- Related: Vincent Cirillo Jr. Convicted of Raping 22-Year-Old Client
Source: The Times Herald