A judge has set a five-day trial in March for a Ridgway man accused of sexually assaulting a woman last year.
A judge has set a five-day trial in March for a Ridgway man accused of sexually assaulting a woman last year.
Defense attorney Vince Felletter entered a not-guilty plea on behalf of 49-year-old Brian Scranton during a Nov. 7 hearing.
A delay in Colorado Bureau of Investigation testing on DNA evidence has held up the case for months. Seventh Judicial District Deputy District Attorney Brannon Jordan told Chief District Judge Cory Jackson attorneys are still waiting for test results and asked to set the case for trial while they continue plea negotiations.
“We still would like to see if we can work toward a resolution,” Felletter said.
Scranton was arrested in January on suspicion of felony sexual assault after a 28-year-old Ridgway woman claimed he assaulted her in her home in December.
The alleged assault occurred after Scranton and his wife had been drinking at a Ridgway bar on the night of Dec. 1, 2023, and spent the night in the woman’s apartment, according to court records.
The woman told investigators the couple went to sleep on a pullout couch and she went to sleep in her own bed. She said she woke up to Scranton on top of her, sexually assaulting her.
In a series of text messages to the woman weeks later, Scranton admitted to the assault and claimed he thought the woman was his wife, according to court records.
Scranton was previously accused of sexually assaulting a different woman at a house party in 2015. A jury found him not guilty in 2018.
Scranton’s trial in the new case is set for March 17-21.