Lyons, N.Y. - The prosecution rested its case Wednesday afternoon following testimony from a Monroe County Crime Lab analyst and a DNA forensic analyst from New York State Police in Albany.
Richard Dallas, 25, faces various sexual assault charges stemming from the alleged rape of a nine month-old baby in Lyons, Wayne County on November 30, 2011. If Dallas is convicted of the most serious charge, he faces the possibility of life in prison.
Testimony on Wednesday focused on bodily fluids recovered from the baby's diaper and abdominal fluids. The crime lab analyst identified sperm cells in various fluids recovered by medical personnel. The DNA analyst testified that DNA detected from bodily fluids recovered from the baby's diaper were a strong match to Richard Dallas. In testing only the male side of the DNA strand the analyst determined the sample matched to a certainty of 1 in 2,857 persons.
He stated that DNA detected in the baby's abdominal fluids was "consistent" with Dallas' DNA but given that the sample was missing one of 15 necessary markers for testing an exact certainty ratio was not determined.
On Tuesday witnesses described the events of November 30, 2011 and the investigation that followed. Evidence speaks to a four-to-five hour window of time on that day that the baby was left in the care of Dallas. The baby's mother called 9-1-1 about an hour after returning home to find Dallas laying on the couch with the baby lying on his chest.
The baby's mother and medical personnel described the girl as being pale and listless. Surgeons and hospital personnel described her physical condition as life-threatening. She required weeks of hospitalization and has since made a remarkable recovery according to authorities.
Lawyer Jim DePoint and Bruce Chambers represent Dallas. They plan to present their case to the judge on Thursday.
The judge has indicated that he will render a verdict on Friday.
