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Child rape trial goes to the jury Prosecutor blames mom who allegedly let three men have sex with girl, 13 By CHRIS BRISTOL A Medford woman accused of letting three men have sex with her 13-year-old daughter during a party last summer failed society and should be held accountable, a prosecutor said in closing arguments Tuesday. "Those men over there are nothing but sexual opportunists who took advantage of what was handed to them on a silver platter," prosecutor Judi Harper said. "But who handed the child over on a silver platter? Her mother." But the defense attorney for Lynda Darlene Hill said her client did not intervene only because she was too drunk to realize what was going on. "Her failure to do so, however morally deficient, was not criminal," Jeni Feinberg argued. The fate of Hill, 39, and the three men now rests in the hands of a Jackson County jury, which began deliberating the case after closing arguments Tuesday. Jurors had the case for about two hours late Tuesday afternoon before going home for the night. They are expected to resume deliberations this morning. Capping a weeklong trial, Harper argued that the girl's own testimony was credible enough to warrant a conviction on all counts. The defendants face a variety of charges, including rape and sodomy. "If she was acting ... you have to give her an Academy Award," Harper said. Even so, Harper argued that the girl's testimony was corroborated by the testimony of other witnesses, including incriminating statements the defendants gave police, and physical evidence, such as a semen-stained robe. Forensic tests revealed the DNA of defendant Johnny "JC" Carter mixed in with the girl's fluids. In their closing arguments, the defense attorneys for Carter, 39, and co-defendants Lamar Esquire McKenzie, 30, and Anthony Dewayne Smith, 32, accused the girl of exaggerating or flat-out lying. McKenzie has claimed he was not even at the party. But the defense is not united. Smith's attorney, Laurance Parker, argued the girl initially told other witnesses that she had sex with only two men _ presumably Carter and McKenzie. In fact, Parker pronounced both men "obviously guilty." At the same time, Parker suggested the girl exaggerated the story later by including Smith. The girl testified that her mother actually coaxed her into having sex with Smith, then showed her how to perform oral sex. On Monday, trial judge Patricia Crain threw out a prostitution charge against Hill. The prosecution argued Hill let the men use her daughter in exchange for crack cocaine, but there was no testimony supporting such a scenario. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA