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Willis arrested for 1997 rape

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Willis guilty of rape

Former church member convicted

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Outside of Merrimack County Superior Court Tina Anderson (left) and Jocelyn Zichterman (center) talk with supporters after a Merrimack Superior Court jury found Ernest Willis guilty on all four counts of forcibly raping Anderson in 1997 when she Purchase photo reprints at PhotoExtra was 15-years-old; Friday, May 27, 2011.

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By Maddie Hanna / Monitor staff May 28, 2011 Nearly 14 years after he impregnated a teenage member of his Concord church, Ernest Willis was found guilty yesterday of forcibly raping her, despite his argument that the sex was consensual. Willis, 52, of Gilford, was found guilty of three counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault and one count of felonious sexual assault for raping Tina Anderson twice in 1997, when she was his 15-year-old babysitter. The Merrimack County jury took a day to deliberate following four days of trial, filing into the courtroom late yesterday afternoon just as bailiffs prepared to send the crowd home for the weekend.

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Willis guilty of rape | Concord Monitor

As a court clerk polled the six men and six women of the jury, each declared Willis guilty. Anderson, sitting in the front row, sunk into the arms of a supporter, her brother holding the two of them. Earlier in the afternoon, Anderson read a victim impact statement in the courtroom. "When he decided his sexual gratification was the most important thing in his life, he shattered mine," she said. After becoming pregnant at age 15, Anderson was brought before the congregation at Trinity Baptist Church, asking for forgiveness in front of hundreds at a Sunday night service. Her pastor helped arrange for her to be sent to Colorado, where she had her baby and gave it up for adoption. The police said they were unable to find Anderson and closed the investigation. But they resumed the effort last year, after a former Trinity member wrote about Anderson's story on a Facebook page. Tracked down by Concord Detective Chris DeAngelis, Anderson, now 29 and living in Arizona, agreed to speak to the police, and Willis was arrested in August. He was led out of the courtroom yesterday in handcuffs, shepherded into a van that would take him to the Merrimack County jail, where he will await sentencing. He faces a maximum of 54 years in prison. Willis's attorneys said during trial that they would file a motion to set aside a verdict finding him guilty of raping Anderson in a car while giving her a driving lesson. Willis, who admits to having sex with Anderson in her home and pleaded guilty just before the trial to one count of statutory rape, testified that he touched Anderson sexually during one driving lesson. But he said he did not have sex with her until after a subsequent driving lesson, when he asked her "if she would like to join me in sexual intercourse."

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Merrimack County bailiffs handcuff Ernest Willis after he is found guilty on all four counts of forcibly raping Tina Anderson in 1997 when she was 15-years-old; Friday, May 27, Purchase photo reprints at 2011. PhotoExtra

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Photo by Alexander Cohn / Monitor staff

Merrimack County Superior Court judge Larry Smukler addresses Ernest Willis shortly before a jury pronounced him guilty on all four counts of forcibly raping Tina Anderson in 1997 when she was 15years-old; Friday, May 27, 2011. Willis earlier pleaded guilty to having Purchase sex with Anderson. photo reprints at PhotoExtra

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Anderson, he testified, "replied yes." Assistant County Attorney Wayne Coull pressed Willis on that version of events and later told jurors it wasn't credible to believe that Anderson, brought up in a church where children didn't hold hands, had indicated to Willis that she wanted to have sex with him. But Willis's public defender, Donna Brown, questioned the credibility of Anderson's account, which included conflicting statements about going to dinner with Willis on her 16th birthday at the Bedford Village Inn, two months after she said Willis forcibly raped her. Brown said Anderson had changed her story to "look more like a victim" because she didn't receive the treatment she deserved after she became pregnant in 1997. But Coull said Anderson never shared the full story with her mother and pastor, who Anderson said told her that "good Christians forgive and forget" when she reported being abused by her stepfather. And when she reported her pregnancy, Coull said, she was "shamed, shunned, and silenced. Shipped away." Yesterday, dozens of supporters surrounded her outside the courthouse, holding posters depicting Jesus beside a 16-year-old Anderson and the baby she gave up for adoption.
WILLIS ARRESTED FOR 1997 RAPE
CONCORD

Defense asks judge for new rape trial

As he awaits his sentencing for forcibly raping a fellow Trinity Baptist Church member twice in 1997 and getting 0 her pregnant at age 15, Ernest Willis is asking
June 7, 2011 WARNER

Assault allegations tied to city church

The Warner police said yesterday they are investigating the allegations of a California woman who recently reported 0 being sexually assaulted as a teenager about

June 3, 2011 MONITOR EDITORIAL

Applaud Anderson for speaking out

Tina Anderson's horrifying treatment by Concord's Trinity Baptist Church made her story the subject of national 1 attention. Anderson was 15 in 1997 when she

June 1, 2011

http://www.concordmonitor.com/...3Asession%3ACSUserId%7CCSGroupId%3Aapproved%3ABA4A9537C4BF4594E11F4B09D8217743&CSUserId=94&CSGroupId=1[6/23/2011 2:18:05 AM]

Willis guilty of rape | Concord Monitor More Willis arrested for 1997 rape

"Tina Anderson is a hero today," said Jocelyn Zichterman, an advocate for abuse victims within Independent Fundamental Baptist churches who encouraged Anderson to come forward with her story last year. (next page )
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Trinity Baptist Church CONCORD (NH) Monitor staff Trials Ernest Willis Tina Anderson

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I have to hand it to Mad Hatter (Maddie Hanna)

By ItsaRepublic - 05/29/2011 - 11:09 am

Nice job reporting this. Job well done and not that opinionated in the reporting department! Login or register to post comments
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Voice of Experience
By IcelanderLight - 05/28/2011 - 4:49 pm

Tina Anderson's choice to have dinner with Willis after the rapes and her hesitation to tell her mother and pastor (who were RESPONSIBLE for her!) exactly what happened, are completely understandable when one considers what her mother and pastor did after her step-father raped her (her first rape). She had very few choices and no one worthy of trust. I get so upset whenever I hear of criticism of children who do not come forward for years when abused by adults. It is curious that she has reportedly lost her job teaching music at a fundamentalist college after being interviewed by the police. "Fundamentalism" in any religion for me means tribal, insular, and "capable of any evil and any good" that the leadership decides on. Common sense is eclipsed. Luther's words "sola scriptura" ... "sola fide" ... "sola gratia" ... "solus Christus" and "sola Deo gloria" would do these crazies good. Congratulations to the police, county attorney and the judge for bringing this prosecution to a (albeit belated) conclusion. A Stunned Reader Login or register to post comments

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Consensual Sex?
By FearlessLdr - 05/28/2011 - 4:36 pm

The law is clear: a 15 year-old (a minor) does not have the capacity to consent to sex. An

http://www.concordmonitor.com/...3Asession%3ACSUserId%7CCSGroupId%3Aapproved%3ABA4A9537C4BF4594E11F4B09D8217743&CSUserId=94&CSGroupId=1[6/23/2011 2:18:05 AM]

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Former church member convicted

"We hope Tina can now move on with her life and find a sense of peace," Zichterman said, delivering the brief statement on Anderson's behalf. She hugged Anderson and escorted her away from the group of supporters, some of whom stayed to watch and take pictures as bailiffs led Willis into the sheriff's van. Willis won't be sentenced until a hearing at a later date. His attorneys said he would wait to address the court until his sentencing.

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(Maddie Hanna can be reached at 369-3321 or mhanna@cmonitor.com.)

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Trinity Baptist Church CONCORD (NH) Monitor staff Trials Ernest Willis Tina Anderson

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Willis guilty of rape | Concord Monitor

adult having sex with a 15 year-old is Statutory Rape. Even if Willis's claims of consent are true, what was Willis's lawyer thinking? Any halfcompetent member of the bar would realize this defense is ridiculous on it's face. This defense is tantamount to an admission of guilt. If the client demands this defense, the lawyer has an obligation to counsel the client. If the client continues to insist on this defense, the attorney has an obligation to withdraw. The article states defense attorneys are readying a motion to set aside the jury's verdict. As far as I can tell, the only possible grounds for setting aside this verdict is "Ineffective Assistance of Counsel. "I'm sorry your honor," the defense will argue, "My lawyer is a moron." This Public Defender better stay on the state's payroll. If she were in private practice, I wouldn't hire her to appear in traffic court. This Public Defender, who masquerades as a lawyer, is an idiot. Login or register to post comments

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Not his lawyers' decisions

By Some Guy - 05/29/2011 - 11:12 am

There's a few things that only a client can decide, such as whether to plead guilty and whether to testify. Willis chose to testify and make those statements in his "defense." Usually, it is a pretty bad idea for a defendant to testify. But if Willis, when he was first speaking to the police, said "we had sex but it was consensual," his statements would have been used against him. Anything a person says to the police while they are being investigated goes into a report and gets used against them in court. So the jury would have heard those statements he made anyway. He can either sit back and let the jury hear those statements that he made, or he can take the stand and try to explain how that is the true story of what happened. If the jury buys his story, he gets statutory rape. If they don't buy his story, he gets aggravaded felonious sexual assault. The latter comes with a lot more prison time. So you're right, it isn't much of a "defense." It's more damage control than anything. He realized that, due to the statements he made to the police, he's definitely going to be convicted of SOMETHING. Better to make it the crime that carries a less harsh penalty. For the record Donna Brown and Brooke Belanger are some of the best attorneys you'll find in this state. The New Hampshire Public Defender's Office is one of the best public defender programs in the nation, and only highly skilled attorneys are hired into the program. They aren't in private practice because they don't want to be. Login or register to post comments
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thank you
By snowbunny - 05/29/2011 - 6:58 pm

fearless leader so often spins negative narratives that are based in neither fact nor reality, especially if it has anything to do with the public sector. i appreciate you taking the time for a clear explanation of why the defense was handled this way. Login or register to post comments
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And YOUR Experience With Our Legal System Is?

By FearlessLdr - 05/29/2011 - 10:32 pm

http://www.concordmonitor.com/...3Asession%3ACSUserId%7CCSGroupId%3Aapproved%3ABA4A9537C4BF4594E11F4B09D8217743&CSUserId=94&CSGroupId=1[6/23/2011 2:18:05 AM]

Willis guilty of rape | Concord Monitor

If the client was so hell-bent on testifying, the attorney can withdraw. "Negative narratives that are based in neither fact nor reality." Please present examples. Otherwise, your just another liberal pseudo-intellectual who can't support their own argument. Login or register to post comments

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This Public Defender, who masquerades as a lawyer, is an idiot

By BillFromDover - 05/29/2011 - 1:44 am

Hmmmm....her client had already admitted to having sex with a 15-yearold, and stated that it was consensual. As his lawyer, given these same circumstances, what would you argue? Temporary insanity; that he forcefully and brutally raped her? Please enlighten us all here with your acute Perry Mason mind. "If the client demands this defense, the lawyer has an obligation to counsel the client" To what... retract his statement; lie, what? Please be specific here! "If the client continues to insist on this defense, the attorney has an obligation to withdraw". I think your problem is evident: YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH! I understand that this affliction is usually caused by a TV stuck on one news channel: FOX News! And seein' hows the church was up to its steeple in this mess, why didn't they step up and furnish an attorney? Login or register to post comments

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The Church Has It's Own Problems Here...

By FearlessLdr - 05/29/2011 - 10:28 pm

...namely aiding and abetting and accessory after-the-fact. This young lady's attorney should have a field day with this Church and their insurance company. Statements can be minimized. Statements to the police can be excluded on certain grounds. On of the ways to keep this from coming in is to keep the defendant off the stand. If the client is hell-bent on testifying, despite the attorney's insistence he do otherwise, the attorney can withdraw. If you have further questions, please read The New Hampshire Rules of Criminal Procedure and The Rules of Evidence. Attorneys have been permitted to withdraw over a helluva lot less. FYI: I don't watch Fox News. But then again, like most liberals, you would prefer to jump to conclusions. After all, anything that goes wrong or is wrong with our society is either the fault of Fox News or George Bush. Right, Flounder? I'm shocked, Flounder. No Google references? Login or register to post comments

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Thank you Tina

By _Penny_ - 05/28/2011 - 3:03 am

Thank you Tina for being so brave and coming forward. I think you will help other children who suffer from sexual assault in the future. THANK YOU TINA.

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Willis guilty of rape | Concord Monitor

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