Joe.My.God. LGBT News
Oregon Live reports:
The sex crimes case against prominent gay activist Terry Bean of Portland and his ex-boyfriend will be dismissed Tuesday because the alleged victim refuses to testify. Bean, 67, and former boyfriend Kiah Loy Lawson, 25, are accused of having sex with a 15-year-old boy at a Eugene hotel in 2013. They each are charged with two counts of third-degree sodomy, a felony, and third-degree sexual abuse, a misdemeanor. The boy, now 17, has been on the run from detectives trying to serve a subpoena that would have required him to appear at the trial, which is scheduled to start Tuesday. The boy doesn’t want testify and has attempted suicide because he’s traumatized by the prospect of being forced to appear, said his attorney, Lori Deveny. Without him, the state can’t proceed. Lane County Chief Deputy District Attorney Erik Hasselman said he met with the teenager earlier this month and assured him that the state won’t compel him to return for the trial. The boy lives in San Diego. “It’s extremely unlikely” that he will show up, Hasselman said Friday during a status hearing on the case. Circuit Judge Jay McAlpin will make the decision on dismissing the charges Tuesday. The prosecution will ask McAlpin to dismiss the case without prejudice, which means the state could refile charges. Attorneys for Bean and Lawson want the case dismissed outright.
Three weeks ago the state accused the alleged victim and his mother of engaging in an elaborate series of ruses in order to evade being served with a subpoena ordering him to appear for the trial.