A 4th District judge declared a mistrial Thursday following one day of testimony in the trial of a prison parolee charged with raping a 16-year-old Orem girl last February.
Judge Boyd L. Park granted the mistrial at the request of Public Defender Michael Esplin, who claimed the state had neglected to fully inform him about evidence to be presented during trial. The defendant, Jerome Victor Trafny, 27, Orem, will be retried Nov. 9-10."Basically, the problems related to discovery," said Deputy Utah County Attorney Kay Bryson, referring to the prosecution's obligation to inform the defense about evidence to be presented.
The defendant originally was to be tried in April, but the Utah County attorney's office filed a motion to temporarily dismiss the case because of difficulty in obtaining a witness. Charges were refiled June 6.
According to police reports, the victim claimed she was raped by a man who offered her a ride home from a party in Orem. Instead of taking her home, he drove her to the city's research and technology park, where the crime allegedly occurred.
Trafny was paroled last fall from a federal prison in Missouri, where he served time for bank robbery.