Following a two-day trial in Lexington this week, former State Representative and Kentucky Justice Cabinet Secretary John Tilley was found not guilty of rape by a jury.
According to WKYT and other media outlets out of Fayette County, the jury deliberated for approximately five hours before delivering their not guilty verdict. Tilley had been indicted in 2022 for one count of first-degree rape, where he was accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a hotel.
During the trial, Tilley’s defense did say Tilley and the victim had what Tilley believed to be consensual sex—the woman was reportedly intoxicated and was seen stumbling at the hotel with Tilley on video footage.
The 55-year-old Tilley a Democrat, represented portions of Christian and Trigg counties in the General Assembly from 2007 until he was chosen by former Republican Governor Matt Bevin as his Justice Cabinet Secretary and he served in that capacity from December of 2015 until January of 2020.