Sex Abuse Trial Opens for Retired Teacher, Ex-Wife
A 65-year-old retired high school teacher and his ex-wife repeatedly molested two young girls, a prosecutor told jurors Wednesday.
Gilbert Wayne Wright faces multiple sex charges against the girls. Ex-wife Diana Nice, 47, is accused of procuring the girls, ages 9 and 12, for Wright’s sexual purposes.
The ex-couple’s trial got underway Wednesday--more than two years after the couple was charged. The two have pleaded not guilty.
In opening statements, Deputy Dist. Atty. Audry Rohn described in lurid detail how Wright and Nice forced the girls at separate times to participate in a variety of sex acts.
For six months, the sexual abuse continued against the older girl, Rohn said, and on more than one occasion involved her being bound and tied to a bed. Rohn said the abuse later extended to a second girl, age 9.
The girls, who live in Oklahoma, were molested while visiting Nice in 1996 and 1997, Rohn said. But defense lawyers told the jury that the girls fabricated the stories. Lawyer Louis “Chuck” Samonsky, who is representing Wright, suggested that the older girl was trying to get back at Wright after he threw her out after a six-month stay.
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