BUCYRUS—Jury selection began at 8:30 Monday morning in the Crawford County Common Pleas Court for the trial of Jason Tupps of Galion.
Retired Visiting Judge Howard Hall is presiding over the Tupps case. Tupps is represented by Mansfield attorney James Mayer III.
The former corrections officer is charged with one count of rape, a felony of the first degree, and one count of domestic violence, a fourth-degree felony. If convicted, Tupps could face more than 16 years in prison.
According to the prosecutors, there is strong evidence in the case: “Most rapes are not recorded. We have audio evidence. A jury will listen to the precise moments of the incident,”
Mayer refutes those claims and contends that there was consensual sexual contact between the couple the day after the attack.
The victim was married to Tupps at the time of the alleged rape.
Crawford County Now will continue to cover this developing news story.