A Supreme Court jury on Wednesday acquitted a prison officer of rape by a majority verdict of 7-1.
Davinchi McPhee, 34, broke down in tears after the jury cleared him of sexually assaulting the 18-year-old last February.
McPhee was interdicted from his duties as a prison officer and placed on half-pay while the case was pending. The acquittal paves the way for him to return to work.
McPhee, in his testimony, said that he had consensual sex with the young woman.
According to her, McPhee pulled up alongside her in a burgundy Honda Odyssey as she was walking home on February 17, 2022 and asked if she needed a job.
The young woman said she told the stranger, who introduced himself as Jermaine “JJ” Johnson, that she did.
She testified that after that, he offered her a ride and dropped her home. He got her number and told her that he would call her in 25 minutes for the interview.
The witness said she was interested in the job because her family had recently relocated from a Family Island and was receiving social assistance for housing and groceries. She said, at the time, she was in the 12th-grade at a public school and had no prior work experience.
She said the man called and picked her up as promised. Then, he told her he was going to sign papers for the purchase of the old Robin Hood location on Prince Charles Drive before driving onto the premises, she said.
The witness said the man told her that he had two jobs available: one as a personal assistant and the other as a secretary.
She said that she was interested in the personal assistant job because she was attracted by the $750 weekly salary.
The witness recalled that McPhee told her that sometimes he got upset and needed massages. He then asked her to massage his chest after he took off his shirt, she said.
After the massage, she said, he started to suck her fingers, making her feel uncomfortable.
That’s when, she said, she told McPhee that the job wasn’t for her.
She said that he became upset and told her that he had missed out on a $20,000 business deal because of the interview.
He said since she couldn’t give him the money, she would have to give him her body, the court heard.
The young woman said that she was afraid because McPhee told her that he always had a gun in his car. She said she complied with his demand to get undressed out of fear.
After this, she alleged, McPhee performed oral sex on her before he told her to “bounce on his penis”.
She said McPhee told her to stop because he was about to ejaculate.
McPhee was represented by Joel Seymour and Roberto Reckley. Erica Ingraham was the prosecutor.
