A former Idaho lawmaker convicted of raping a 19-year-old legislative intern has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for the crime.
Aaron von Ehlinger should serve at the very least eight years earlier than he will probably be eligible for parole, 4th District Judge Michael Reardon stated through the sentencing listening to on Wednesday.
Von Ehlinger was convicted of felony rape in April, roughly a yr after he resigned from his seat in the House of Representatives after an ethics committee really helpful that he be banned from the statehouse.
The choose stated von Ehlinger failed to present empathy or regret, and that it was clear he was not prepared for intercourse offender remedy. The sentence would at the very least deter von Ehlinger from committing one other crime whereas he’s incarcerated, Reardon stated.
“You have a pattern of explaining, excusing, deflecting and blaming others for the circumstances you find yourself in,” Reardon stated.
The investigation into von Ehlinger’s actions started in March 2021 after the intern informed a statehouse supervisor that the Republican from Lewiston raped her at his house after the 2 had dinner at a Boise restaurant. Von Ehlinger has maintained the intercourse was consensual.
The Associated Press usually doesn’t establish individuals who say they’ve been sexually assaulted, and has referred to the girl in this case as “Jane Doe” at her request.
Doe attending the sentencing listening to, and through the continuing the prosecutor performed a recording of Doe speaking about how the rape and its aftermath left her traumatized.
In the recording, Doe described how her autonomy was “ripped violently away.” She generally experiences panic assaults simply from listening to von Ehlinger’s identify, she stated, and has had to set up safety programs and cameras outdoors her house. Von Ehlinger’s supporters publicized Doe’s identify, photograph and private particulars about her life after she reported the rape, and repeatedly harassed her.
Doe stated she was taking a stand “for the future of any Jane and John Doe here in Idaho.”
“I am here now. I am here scared, I am here frightened, I am so petrified, but I will not be intimidated into silence so that another rapist can slip through the cracks of this justice system,” Doe stated in the recording. “I hope he rots in pieces behind those cold metal bars.”
Von Ehlinger reminded the choose that he served as a paratrooper in the Afghanistan battle, and stated that he was skilled in the army to shield folks, particularly ladies.
“We were trained to fight against evil and fight for those who cannot fight for themselves, especially women. That is something I believe then and something I absolutely believe now,” von Ehlinger stated.
He later continued, “The only thing between Afghani women and the middle ages was the American soldier and I am very proud that we were able to do that.”
He additionally stated that he went on a pilgrimage to Israel, Jordan and Egypt earlier than his trial.
“I was ultimately baptized in the Jordan River,” von Ehlinger stated, however was first required to confess his sins. “I confessed a lot of sins your honor — I am not a perfect man — but rape was not a sin that I could confess to. It would be sin to confess to something that I did not commit.”
But the choose stated von Ehlinger demonstrated a scarcity of empathy for the sufferer and had a propensity to blame her.
“You see yourself as a victim and you see yourself as a hero, and frankly I don’t see you as either one of those things,” Reardon informed the defendant. “You created your own circumstances that put you here today.”
The choose additionally ordered von Ehlinger to register as a intercourse offender and positioned him below a no-contact order lasting by means of 2055.
In the U.S., assist is on the market for survivors of sexual violence and their households. RAINN affords assets at 1-800-656-HOPE and on their web site, www.rainn.org.
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