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A Lancaster County jury will begin deliberating today on the fate of a Manheim man accused of severely beating his girlfriend, then forcing her into a closet so police wouldn't find her.
Bruce E. McLaughlin, 43, is charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and unlawful restraint in connection with the alleged assault Sept. 24, 2007, on 21-year-old Rebekah Boyer.
According to testimony and court documents, McLaughlin inflicted injuries on 90 percent of Boyer's body by punching and kicking her inside and outside his West High Street home.
When McLaughlin heard police officers knocking at his door, he forced Boyer into a closet, prosecutors said.
"She was injured, bleeding and begging for help" when she was "stuffed in his closet," Assistant District Attorney Susan Ellison said.
The beating would have continued, Ellison said, if police officers hadn't responded to neighbors' 911 calls. When officers arrived, McLaughlin lied about Boyer's whereabouts, Ellison said.
Police only realized what happened when Boyer freed herself from the closet while they were searching the home, Ellison said.
Lancaster County Judge David L. Ashworth is presiding at the trial. He is expected to instruct the jurors on the charges this morning, then dismiss them to deliberate.
The most severe charge, aggravated assault, carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence upon conviction.Defense attorney Karl Rominger argued that Boyer is a cocaine addict and was high that day, so her version of events should be dismissed.
He stressed the fact that Boyer wouldn't testify in court as another reason not to believe her. The attorney said prosecutors extended little effort to track Boyer down because she wouldn't seem credible in court.
Ellison "has not had cooperation from her alleged victim," Rominger said in closings. Rominger said that Boyer was "allowed" to avoid court.
Rominger conceded that McLaughlin and Boyer physically fought, but claimed Boyer sustained her injuries when she fell out of the closet.
Ellison said that despite Boyer's absence from court, there is enough evidence to convict McLaughlin.
She said McLaughlin became enraged when he found out Boyer was with another man.
"He was (angry) that his girlfriend was out with another man, so he hunts her down, drags her home and beats the snot out of her," Ellison told the jurors.
Neighbors who saw the incident outside McLaughlin's home testified Thursday. First-responding police officers and a trauma surgeon who treated Boyer also took the stand.
(470) (384) (361) (345) (119) (84) (56) (54) (50) (17) (7) (6) (3) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2)Boyer spent two days at Lancaster General Hospital, Dr. Paul Newman said. She suffered a concussion, multiple lacerations, swelling, bruises and had a bite mark on her foot, he testified.
"This was a relentless attack from head to toe," Ellison said.
Neighbors reported hearing the woman scream, then seeing her on the ground with McLaughlin bent over her throwing punches, according to testimony.
Penn Township police Officer Jason Riggle testified he was the first officer to find the woman. Another officer searched upstairs while Riggle stayed downstairs with McLaughlin, according to testimony.
Riggle testified he then heard "banging" and later a "big crash."
When he walked to the living room, Riggle said he saw the woman half-naked and face-down on the floor, still partially in the closet.
"She appeared beat up" with blood all over her face, Riggle testified.
"She said, 'Help me,' " Riggle said.
E-mail: bhambright@lnpnews.com
