A jury is set to deliberate the outcome of Montaret Davis' trial following the presentation of further evidence today in Charlottesville Circuit Court. Davis was arrested Oct. 5 for an Aug. 26 rape and armed robbery.
Davis is charged with entering a female University student's 17th Street home and raping her while holding her male friend at gunpoint.
He now stands trial on 16 felony counts including rape, robbery, forcible sodomy and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
The prosecution continued its presentation of forensic evidence yesterday with the introduction of bed sheets and a beer can taken from the scene of the crime.
DNA samples of semen and saliva taken from the sheets and the can of beer are what originally led to Davis' arrest.
After presenting the alleged victims' testimonies to the jury Monday, the prosecution focused yesterday on forensic evidence and attempted to eliminate doubt that any of the materials could have been contaminated.
The jury, composed of six males, six females and one male alternate, listened to almost two hours of testimony from Detective Robert Lowry and Officer M.R. Bishop of the Charlottesville Police detailing the collection of fingerprints and removal of evidence from the scene.
Both officers identified evidence presented to them by Commonwealth Attorney Dave Chapman and emphasized the procedures used in gathering the items.
The prosecution also presented a videotape of Davis' questioning by the police. In the tape, Davis repeatedly denied being at the 17th Street residence on the night in question, although the police informed him that collected DNA samples place him at the scene of the crime.
Defense attorney J. Lloyd Snook III, who said he intends to prove that Davis and the victim had consensual sex as part of a marijuana deal, did not contest the prosecution's evidence, nor did he introduce a line of questioning consistent with the plan of defense yesterday.
Following the conclusion of yesterday's testimony, Snook moved to strike the charge of robbery and lesser-included offenses because of a lack of evidence. But the judge ruled the move was premature and needed to wait until all the evidence had been presented.
Testimony is scheduled to continue today. Chapman said he plans to introduce three more witnesses for the prosecution before the defense asks two witnesses of its own and Davis himself takes the stand.
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