Citing improper jury instruction, the Alaska Court of Appeals has reversed a 2010 sexual assault conviction against a Sitka man.
A jury found Wilburn Jackson guilty of first-degree sexual assault and fourth-degree assault after a Superior Court trial more than four years ago.
According to court records, Jackson and the victim were living together at the time of the assault. After a night of drinking, they returned to their trailer at separate times. Jackson dragged the woman by her hair that night, the basis for the state's assault charge, the records say. Jackson did not challenge the assault charge in his appeal.
Prosecutors argued Jackson became enraged the next morning when he could not find some money. According to the state's case, he broke furniture and eventually pinned the victim to the floor and raped her, an assault that consisted of at least two instances of penetration. Separate instances can be charged separately under state law.
Jackson argued during the trial that most of what occurred was consensual.
He appealed his conviction, arguing the court did not properly instruct the jury about how to arrive at its verdict. The due process clause of the Alaska Constitution protects defendants' right by requiring that jurors agree on the specific acts that serve as the basis for charges.
The state's indictment charged Jackson with one count of sex assault but it did not specify "which act or acts of sexual penetration formed the basis of that charge," according to the Court of Appeals opinion.
Judge Marjorie Allard wrote in the opinion that both parties and the court recognized the issue needed to be clarified, "but then no clarifying instruction was actually provided."
Rick Svobodny, deputy attorney general in the Department of Law's Criminal Division, said the argument that a mistake was made during jury instructions is "not at all uncommon." He contends that the larger question is whether there was truly a mistake.
In Jackson's and similar cases, the judges examine whether there was a tactical reason for avoiding mention of the issue. The appeals court determined, according to Svobodny, that it was possible in Jackson's case but not likely.
The state intends to retry Jackson, he said.
"The decision has been out for less than a day, and we don't know if all the witnesses will be available," Svobodny said.
Jackson remains in custody. He will appear before a trial court within 10 days. That's when a new trial date and bail conditions could be set.
Jackson could face more charges this time too.
"He argued the judge screwed up by having just the one charge, so it may be that he now ends up facing three," Svobodny said.
Correction: The above article originally stated the Alaska Supreme Court reversed the conviction. The Alaska Court of Appeals reversed the conviction.