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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 15, 2005 Defendant Christopher Richard Valdez, 34, of Phoenix. Greenway sex was consensual, lawyer contends Trial begins in sexual assault case that brought swift community response By PARIS ACHEN Mail Tribune The public defender for a man accused of raping a 15-year-old girl in March at a transient camp on the Bear Creek Greenway argued Wednesday that sex between his client and the teenager was consensual. Prosecutors said Christopher Richard Valdez, 34, of Phoenix, and two other unidentified men kidnapped, raped and sodomized the girl March 4 inside a tent on the bike path near the Rogue Valley Mall. "There is not a lot of evidence there were two other guys as the (victim) claims," said defense attorney Michael Stedman. "There is no DNA. Not even one person saw them with my client. "If (the victim) is untruthful about one thing, she may be untruthful about another thing." The case garnered intense media attention and prompted a swift city and community effort last spring to remove masses of blackberry bushes sheltering transient campsites along the Greenway, a popular recreational path along Bear Creek between Central Point and Ashland. Advertisement On the first day of Valdez’s trial in Jackson County Circuit Court on charges of kidnapping, rape, sodomy and assault, Medford police Detective Tony Young testified Wednesday that the victim told police three men attacked her, dragged her into a nearby tent and sexually assaulted her. Valdez has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Young, who interviewed the victim as part of the investigation, testified that the victim’s descriptions of Valdez’s tattoos and the tent where the assault took place were accurate and detailed. He said he was confident she was telling the truth. Prosecutors presented the victim’s torn T-shirt, bloody panties, the tent and bedding from the tent as evidence Wednesday. They said DNA evidence and the defendant’s tattoos, expected to be shown to the jury today, would prove Valdez’s guilt in the case. The jury of seven women and six men, including one alternate, was selected Wednesday out of a pool of about 50 people. The victim, her friend, her mother, a doctor, a nurse and crime lab experts are expected to testify today. Attorneys estimated the trial would likely wrap up by Friday. A total of 11 witnesses are slated to testify. If convicted of the charges, Valdez faces a sentence of eight years and three months. Reach reporter Paris Achen at 776-4496 or e-mail Greenway sex was consensual, lawyer contends ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker dvd-r Distance Education Computer Security Ztech Media Hosting Sports Equipment Online Casino Student Loans Online Pharmacy tcg student loan consolidation Online Casino Reviews Myspace Home Equity Loans Windermere Van Vleet Deep Muscle Stimulator Discount Hotel Reservations Southern Oregon Loans Online Casino News Casino Gambling Sites Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Salvia Divinorum Advertisement s