Defendant Adam Smith (on witness stand) was found not guilty Friday on charges of rape.
Mark Lovewell

Rape Trial Ends With Acquittal

<p>A California man was found not guilty by a Dukes County superior court jury Friday on charges of rape, indecent assault and battery and intimidation of a witness.</p>

A California man was found not guilty by a Dukes County superior court jury Friday on charges of rape, indecent assault and battery and intimidation of a witness.

Adam M. Smith, 29, of Berkeley, Calif., was in tears waiting for the verdict in the Edgartown courthouse Friday. He hugged his family after the verdict was read by Dukes County superior court clerk Joseph E. Sollitto Jr.

Defense attorney J. Drew Segadelli outside Edgartown courthouse following verdict.
Mark Lovewell
Defense attorney J. Drew Segadelli outside Edgartown courthouse following verdict.
Mark Lovewell

“Sir, you are free to go,” Judge Gary A. Nickerson told Mr. Smith.

A jury of eight men and four women deliberated for about an hour and a half before returning the verdict.

“I’ve known my client was innocent from the start and the jury found it that way in short order, which speaks to the evidence,” defense attorney J. Drew Segadelli said after the verdict.

He said it had been a hard ordeal for Mr. Smith’s family, who were in the courtroom throughout the trial.

Steve Sylvester, a Smith family friend who also attended the trial, said there was an offer to settle the case but his family supported Mr. Smith’s decision to go to trial.

“His decision was to clear his name,” Mr. Sylvester said. “He cleared his name.”

The four-day trial opened Tuesday and included testimony from witnesses on both sides.

The initial indictment of three counts of rape and one count of intimidation of a witness was changed during the trial to one count of rape, one count of indecent assault and battery, and intimidation of a witness.

The case dated to Labor Day weekend in 2015, when Mr. Smith was on the Vineyard for a bachelor party. A woman visiting the Island with two friends met Mr. Smith at the Seafood Shanty and went back to the Katama rental home where he and the other men were staying, according to court testimony.

Cape and Islands assistant district attorney Michael Patterson at trial.
Mark Lovewell
Cape and Islands assistant district attorney Michael Patterson at trial.
Mark Lovewell

It is Gazette policy not to name alleged victims of sexual assault.

The woman, now 32, took the stand Wednesday. She said she and Mr. Smith went to an upstairs bedroom, where she said they made out and then he allegedly assaulted her. The woman said she said no and tried to scoot away, and that she later left the room, took a wrong turn, and walked by the bedroom, at which point she said Mr. Smith threatened her and told her not to tell anyone.

Mr. Smith took the stand Thursday morning and refuted that account, saying their activity was consensual and he never threatened her. He said he told other men at the bachelor party that he was dumbfounded by what happened.

The alleged victim’s friends and police officers testified that the woman left the house upset and was afraid to talk to the police when they were later called. She was transported to the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital in an ambulance, according to testimony.

Several men who attended the bachelor party said Mr. Smith told them after the incident that they had been having a consensual encounter when the alleged victim got upset and left.

Mr. Smith’s family was sitting in the front row in the courtroom Friday morning during closing arguments. The alleged victim was also in the courtroom.

Prosecutor Michael Patterson, an assistant Cape and Islands district attorney, said in his closing argument that on the night in question, the alleged victim went from happy and carefree to hysterical, crying, and not responsive. “What happened in that bedroom,” he said, arguing that her behavior matched with what the alleged victim said happened.

“No means no, stop means stop,” he said. “[The alleged victim] made perfectly clear to the defendant that she did not consent to the act that he forced upon her.”

During his closing arguments, Mr. Segadelli emphasized Mr. Smith’s account of the night, including that he and the alleged victim were upstairs when she got upset and left.

Mr. Segadelli pointed to what he said were gaps and inconsistencies in the alleged victim’s memories from that night, and tests that showed she had more than twice the blood alcohol content limit for driving. He also said there was no evidence to point to assault or that Mr. Smith held the alleged victim down.

“The evidence is overwhelming as to what happened that night and what didn’t happen that night,” he said. “And one man is telling the truth.”

Heather Hamacek contributed reporting.

Comments

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 10/09/2017 - 12:37

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Bob Edgartown

sham on the Gazette for not printing the name of this woman who ruined this man's life.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 10/10/2017 - 09:20

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Tom West Tisbury

Bob has a point. If the man is not guilty, then he is the victim. However, the fault is not really that of the woman, but rather of prosecutors who bring to trial such weak cases. A similar case occurred on the Vineyard earlier this year.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 10/10/2017 - 09:56

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Lorraine Edgartown

I agree with Bob. If a male can be named and his life in ruins, legal, monetary, reputation, why is a female immune from being named? This is total inequality and hypocrisy. If females want equality then it has to be across the board. As a female who has lived through many decades and seen many changes, this is not a good attitude. Name them all.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 10/10/2017 - 16:42

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Kate Edgartown

Classic example of why more woman don't come forward. With the Harvey Weinstein scandal in the news -- this story feels ever more important. Praise the Gazette for not printing her name + wonder if she will come forward to add her name to the roster of women who are unable to provide concrete evidence in cases like this. Lots of mixed feelings on this one -- does this decision suggest she made the whole thing up? Feels doubtful to me.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 10/10/2017 - 18:49

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deshandra brown Edg

There should be a law that if you make an allegation against someone who is found not guilty, the you should be charged with making a false allegation and the sentence for that allegation should be the same as that which, if convicted, the alleged 'suspect' would have to serve. I agree with the above posters. Name the woman making the allegation. For the rest of his life, this man will have to explain this situation when he goes for job interviews etc since this story will live on forever on the internet.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 10/11/2017 - 09:19

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Chris OB

No, the newspaper has done the right thing here. Victims of sexual assault have an absolute right not to have their names published. Of course, the newspaper could also withhold the name of the defendant as well. However, keep in mind, NOT Guilty does not necessarily mean innocent. They are two different things. I am not saying the man is guilty, but to shame someone because they believe they were the victim of an assault will just lead to less reporting. That is an outcome that is good for no one.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 10/11/2017 - 12:23

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MV Edgartown

Whoa whoa.. where does it say this was a false allegation?? As far as I believe the prosecution and state of Massachusetts charged him with rape.. which still may have occurred. Just b/c he was found not-guilty doesn't mean he isnt't guilty, it just means he wasn't found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Women every day go through this, and this is why they don't like going through with these cases, the burden of proof is always on them, and it is hard to prove when it is between two people, and no witnesses to what really happened. Stop victim blaming, something definitely happened to this woman, it just wasn't proven.

Bob Edgartown

Something did happen and it all started with a night of drinking by both parties. Anyone over the age of 18 knows how these heavy drinking nights can get out of control by all involved. They just usually do not end up in court with lives ruined. Today no one is at fault for their own actions it is always someone else and not me. In the end I wonder who was the real victim was here. We know something definitely happened to this man and you can read it in black and white for ever in this paper.

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