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Cumberland Twp. man bound over in rape case involving 14-year-old girlBy JEFFREY B. ROTHTimes Staff WriterA Cumberland Township man has been bound over to court on three of four charges related to the alleged rape of a 14-year-old girl.Carl Woemer, 50,* of 1195 Herr’s Ridge Road, Gettysburg, attended his hearing before District Justice Thomas R. Carr in Gettysburg.Woemer was accompanied by Ms wife and his attorney, Jeffery M.Cook. Assistant District Attorney Martha J. Duvall represented the commonwealth.Trooper Dennis Kem of the state police at Gettysburg, who investigated the incident, filed charges of two counts of rape, and a count each of indecent assault and corruption of minors against Woemer.The charges were filed in connection with a Jan. 12 incident behind the Gettysburg Country Club.At the dose of the one-hour hearing Wednesday afternoon, Cook moved to have both rape counts and the indecent assault charge dismissed.Noting that the alleged victim was 14, she had reached the age of consent and is over the age limit at which the state could have charged statutory rape To sustain the rape counts, thefirst which entails forcible compulsion and the second the threat of forcible compulsion, the commonwealth would have to prove there was no consent by the victim.Cook noted that the victim testified that “he didn’t force me”The indecent assault charge also requires that there is not any consent. Cook did not contest the corruption of minors charge.Countering Cook’s arguments to the court, Duvall noted that even though there was no weapon or threat involved in the incident, there is “ample case law” to sustain the rape counts based on the defendant’s age relatn e to the victim’sage, that the incident occurred in a desolate area with no one around; that she was “groped;” and “that she didn’t want to do it.”“The law does not require a woman or a man ... to use physical force to resist,* Duvall said.The mdeeent assault charge requires a lower level of consent or lack of consent.“There is no evidence that she gave consent to anything,” Duvall argued.Carr ruled that the first rape count, which required forcible compulsion, be dismissed. He bound all the other counts over to court.During an emotional 45-minutetestimony, the victim, an eighth-grader, said that on the evening of the incident, she was riding with Woemer in his Jeep truck, plowing snow.She said that she had ridden with Mm in the past. After dinner, around 7:30 pm., that evening, Woemer drove to his residence, where he changed socks. They left to continue plowing snow.At the County Club, they plowed a lane to the rear of the main building. At a shed, Woemer turned the truck around, stopped it and turned off the lights, she testified.“He scooted over and started (See RAPE on page 3A)
Newspaper Details
Gettysburg Times
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, US
Fri, Feb 04, 1994
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Jessica D.
PA, USA 06 Mar 2022
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