Jury doesn’t buy consensual-sex defense by Dozier

Erica Johnson

Friday, Aug. 3, 2001 | 10:42 a.m.

Clarence "Jim' Dozier said the sex was consensual. A sexually explicit videotape led jurors to believe otherwise.

Jurors found Dozier guilty on 27 felony counts, including sexual assault and kidnapping, after deliberating four hours Thursday afternoon.

Dozier, 41, was arrested in November after one two victims in the case, a former girlfriend, woke up during the encounter and called police.

Dozier is scheduled he sentenced by District Judge Mark Gibbons. Sept. 13. He faces multiple life sentences.

Jurors last week watched a videotape of Dozier performing sex acts on his unconscious victims, who were drugged by Dozier. Dozier, who maintained the sex was consensual, on Wednesday said the women were in a "deep sleep.'

"The video played a major part in our decision,' juror Vickie Salcedo said. "It was fairly explicit, and it was hard not to take it into consideration because of its graphic nature. It was very difficult to watch.'

Salcedo said it was clear from the video that the sex was not consensual, although she said jurors deliberated about three hours before reaching a decision on the kidnapping charge.

Salcedo said Dozier's own testimony may have worked against him. "There were so many changes in his story from his statement and his testimony on the stand that it made him hard to believe,' Salcedo said.

In an audiotaped statement, Dozier told investigators he gave one of the women two sleeping pills when she said she couldn't sleep. He admitted giving her eight to 10 pills.

Under cross-examination Wednesday Dozier said police coerced him into making the earlier admission. He said he gave the victim two to three pills and sprinkled a pinch of crushed pills in her drink a few hours later.

Juror Karol Fergen, who called the videotape more disturbing than anything she has ever seen, said she is confident justice was done.

"It was so difficult that at times I wasn't even sure I could do this,' she said. "He is a human being, and we had to keep that shadow of doubt. But I can live with my decision.'

During close arguments defense attorney Stan Walton urged jurors to consider such things as the possibility of police coercion and the credibility of one of the victims, and not just focus on the videotape.

"If you're going to base your decision only on what you saw on the tape you're not doing the job you were selected to do,' he said. "There is so much more to this case than meets the eye.'

Deputy District Attorney Mary Kay Holthus Holthus called the case a "no brainer.'

"What matters in this case is that neither of these women on any occasion consented,' she said. "Neither of these women were given the option to say 'no.' And that's what sexual assault is all about.'