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Warrens is acquitted for a second time

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[note this case involves a different daughter than daughter David Gilmore was convicted of abusing]

A Washington County jury finds the 18-year-old Newberg man not guilty on sexual abuse charges; he is released after more than seven months in jail

By Gary Allen,

Newberg Graphic News Editor

Email Gary at gallen@eaglenewspapers.com     

As the verdict was read the weeping began. Exaltations, although hushed in reverence to the sanctity of the court, were nonetheless obvious. The Warrens’ boy was coming home.

   A Washington County jury of seven women and five men acquitted Timothy James Warrens on sexual abuse and unlawful penetration charges Thursday evening after five hours of deliberation. The Warrens family and friends, who had sat across the gallery aisle from the alleged victim’s family and friends for more than three days of often gut-wrenching testimony, were joyous and praised God repeatedly.

   Warrens was acquitted twice over the course of three months on the allegations he sexually abused the now-7-year-old daughter of a friend and former youth pastor at West Chehalem Friends Church. A Yamhill County jury deliberated for two hours in April before unanimously finding in Warren’s favor.    The case was referred to Washington County because the family of the alleged victim had moved from Newberg to the Hagg Lake and Forest Grove areas during the time the alleged abuse took place.

   Warrens’ father, Hewett, quietly thanked the jurors one-by-one as they filed from the courtroom Thursday.

   “I had to have faith in God ... and put my faith in him for justice,” he said. “And today we got justice!”

   Prosecutor Greg Olson said he didn’t believe justice was served, but only that he failed to convince the jury of Warrens’ guilt.

  “I think the bottom line was that it was my fault,” Olson said. “I didn’t prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt ... I take responsibility for that loss.”

   Olson faced an uphill battle from the start. November 2002 examinations by Juliette’s House physicians failed to produce any physical evidence when the girl was assessed after alleging, during a discussion with her mother in September 2002, that Warrens had repeatedly touched her inappropriately over the course of years. The prosecution also didn’t have any witnesses to the alleged crimes.

   Still, Olson remained convinced that Warrens should be tried despite the lack of physical evidence. “If prosecutors only tried those (sexual abuse) cases where there was physical evidence that would mean we would never prosecute,” he said.

   Hewett Warrens faulted Olson for prosecuting his son a second time, as well as the Newberg Police Department for its handling of the case. Videotape evidence introduced at the trial demonstrated that the police repeatedly lied to Warrens during an interview when he was first arrested. Although state and federal law allows a police officer to lie in pursuit of a confession, neither Hewett Warrens nor defense counsel Ted Coran cared for the tactic.

   “The extent that those officers lied to this man in a vain attempt to get him to crack is disgusting,” Coran said during this closing arguments Thursday morning.

   The jury’s decision was 10-2 to acquit and came only an hour after the jury had filed back into the courtroom to tell Circuit Court Judge Nancy Campbell they were “hopelessly deadlocked.” Campbell, instructing the jurors to use their best judgment and try to reach a decision without compromising, returned the jury to their duty.

   “I’m going to send you back in and tell you to keep trying; see what you can do,” she said.

   In the end Olson said he believed the jury was unable to accept that precocious little girl that took the stand days before could be molested.

   “I think that the vast majority of people in the United states don’t want to believe that child abuse happens ...,” he said. “It is a subject that is emotionally charged ... the trial reinforced my belief on that.”

   The father of the child, who has subsequently returned his family to live in Newberg, maintains his belief that his family did the right thing in reporting the alleged abuse to the police. He said his motives were threefold: to protect his daughter, to help Timothy Warrens and to fulfill his duty to potential future victims.

  “In the face of those things I felt I had no choice,” he said.

   He stressed, however, that it was not his, but rather the state’s, decision to prosecute Warrens in both Yamhill and Washington counties and that he holds no ill will toward Warrens or his family.

   “This has been a tremendously difficult ordeal, both for our family and the Warrens family,” he said. “They have been in our prayers throughout this (trial).”

   He said his daughter is faring well, although “she’s had to do some growing up through this, and she’s really risen to the challenge and we’re very proud of her for doing a hard thing and something she did not want to do. None of us had any stomach for any of this.”

   “At least we know that as our daughter works through this as she is growing up, that all was done that could be done.”

   Tim Warrens was released to his family and friends late Wednesday evening. Hewett Warrens was full of praise for the victory, but said “he still has to live with being accused of something so aberrant to society, and to me ...”

   Despite his son’s imprisonment for more than seven months, Hewett Warrens maintained “we believe in the judicial system in Oregon, but we want it to work under the constitution of Oregon and the Constitution of the United States,” he said in reference to the double-jeopardy question of his son being tried twice for the same crime. “The judicial system is a little bent, but not completely broken,” when allegations are enough to prosecute someone.

   “I’m not vindictive ...,” he said. “I will follow the scriptures and do my best, but I will have a different view of the judicial system.”

   Coran said he believed the Yamhill County case was more complete and that once Warrens was acquitted there that should have been the end of the case. He didn’t fault Olson for charging Warrens, understanding that Olson truly believed Warrens was guilty.

   “I guess as much as I think he was wrong, I can’t fault him for thinking that,” Coran said.

   Coran also said that although he was concerned when the jury announced it was deadlocked, he had prepared his client and himself for the worst. He based that preparation on experience that in trials where the prosecution’s case is based solely on the credibility of the defendant and the alleged victim, juries can go either way.

Coran said Timothy Warrens, who didn’t returns calls for comment, remained pretty calm once the jury read its decision.

   “Mr. Warrens has always been a very ... stable guy,” Coran said. “He just doesn’t show a lot of emotions; it’s the way he was.

   “He was obviously relieved. He was a man who could finally let himself believe the nightmare was finally over.”

   Coran said Warrens continued to believe in the judicial system and that his innocence would be proven.

   “He just couldn’t believe that they would think otherwise,” he said.

   Coran did take exception, though, to the length of Warrens stay in jail since his arrest — more than seven months. Warrens waived his right to a speedy trial in the Yamhill County case and his family was unable to pay the substantial bail set in both cases.

   “He’s a boy and he’s been in prison with hardened criminals for seven months,” he said. “Who’s going to pay him back for that?”

2003 Jun 21