A former Cabinet secretary and state lawmaker from western Kentucky has been acquitted of raping a young woman in Lexington two years ago.
Following two days of testimony, a jury deliberated five hours before finding John Tilley not guilty of raping a 21-year-old woman at a Lexington hotel. The alleged victim said she had no memory of what happened the night they met in 2022, while Tilley claimed their sexual encounter was consensual. His attorney Steve Shroering of Louisville said jurors delivered the right verdict.
“It was our position all along that this was a situation where two intoxicated individuals had consensual relations, and Mr. Tilley should never have been charged with a crime," Shroering told WKU Public Radio. “They looked at what Kentucky law says about what constitutes illegal sexual contact, and they rejected the argument that anything that occurred was illegal.”
Tilley, 55, was a Democratic state representative from Hopkinsville before serving as Secretary of the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet under former Gov. Matt Bevin.
Prosecutors argued Tilley had sex with the woman while she was too intoxicated to give legal consent. Assistant Fayette County Commonwealth’s Attorney Kathryn Schafer said despite having video showing the alleged victim stumbling, jurors determined Tilley didn’t commit a crime.
"The definition for rape required the victim to be physically helpless, and it was up to the jury to how they interpreted that and whether or not they thought she was physically helpless," explained Schafer. "At the end of the day, it is up to them to determine whether or not they think that the way she was behaving indicated that she couldn't consent to sexual activity."
While he’s acquitted of criminal wrongdoing, Tilley’s accuser has filed a civil complaint in Fayette Circuit Court.
