New Witness Says Victim Lied About Riordan Raping Her

A witness has come forward with a sworn affidavit declaring that the victim of a man convicted of aggravated sexual assault lied on the stand. The testimony of a teenage girl was evidence, front and center, when a jury found Justin Riordan guilty of aggravated sexual assault of a child on Feb. 19. He received a 10-year sentence in prison the same day.

Immediately after the sentencing, friends and family members declared Riordan’s innocence on San Angelo LIVE!'s Facebook page story post. Over 20,000 people read the LIVE! story. A Facebook group, “Justice for Justin,” and social media hash tag, #JusticeForJustin2016, emerged almost the same day.

Justin Riordan’s sister, Tabitha Foster, is heading the effort to overturn Riordan’s conviction. There are even yard signs and an established Paypal account to collect donations for financing Riordan’s appeal.

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Above: Justin Riordan's sister Tabitha Foster is producing swag to raise funds for her brother's defense. (Facebook)

LIVE! reporter Simone Brooks described the victim's testimony. “She told a different story to each person she spoke with. Because of these various stories, it was difficult to get a definite story line from her, especially when she would deny that she previously stated one thing and then changed her facts,” Brooks wrote.

At the close of the trial Feb. 17, the court reporter wrote, “7:30 (p.m) issue as to CW’s (child witness’) memory of prior statements sent jury home for the night; court will start at 9 (p.m.). In addition, the court reporter wrote, “Att[orneys] are instructed to have the CW (child witness) to review her prior statements.”

On Mar. 8, 51^st District Judge Barbara Walther ordered a hearing to commence Apr. 20, 2016 at 2 p.m. to determine if a new trial and arrest of judgment is appropriate for Riordan. Walther was the presiding judge in the jury trial in the 391^st District Court that convicted and sentenced Riordan.

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Above: Riordan, 29, was found guilty on one count of aggravated sexual assault of a child, a first-degree felony, and has been sentenced to 10 years in prison with the possibility of parole. (TGCJ)

The victim, who was 13 at the time of the aggravated sexual assault, is now 15. A 15-year-old friend of the victim came forward to Riordan’s attorneys after reading about Riordan’s conviction on San Angelo LIVE! on Feb. 20.

“Sometime during my freshman year (fall 2014 to spring 2015), [the victim] and I were talking and hanging out. I asked her about hanging out at [a residence] for the weekend. [The victim] looked at me and said, ‘I don’t want to and kind of can’t because I told [the child who lives there] and her parents a lie,'” the witness stated in a hand-written, sworn affidavit submitted to the court.

“I looked at her and said, ‘What did you lie about?” the witness wrote that she asked the victim. “She said, ‘I told them that a guy named Justin raped me,’” the witness stated.

The witness said after she read about Justin Riordan’s conviction on Facebook through San Angelo LIVE! on Feb. 20, she learned the details of the trial. In response to learning Riordan’s fate, the witness wrote, “That is when it dawned on me that the Justin [who the victim] was talking about was the same one [who] was convicted on 2-19-2016.”

Riordan was convicted for having intercourse with the then-13-year-old girl victim after revelers at a barbecue in Miles had retired for the evening. The victim and two others were sleeping on a sectional sofa, and Riordan was situated on a recliner portion of the sectional. The jury heard that Riordan moved next to the victim at around 1 a.m. on Feb. 23, 2014 and commenced with the crime. The rape kit was accomplished Feb. 24 and evidence could possibly point to the victim having had intercourse by interpreting the criminal complaint.

Attorneys following the case, who asked not to be identified, said the witness statements are far from slam-dunk evidence to obtain a new trial. The difficulties revolve around having juvenile witnesses, on both sides. 

"They are all teenage girls," one attorney said. The other obstacle is the new witness statement does not indicate the exact date when the victim admitted lying. 'Sometime during my freshman year' does not exactly point towards a clear recollection, the attorney noted. At the same time, you have to be very careful about disparaging the testimony of a child victim, especially when a jury of Riordan's peers has considered that testimony in their decision to convict, an attorney said.

The consideration of Judge Walther on Apr. 20 will determine if the new evidence demands a new trial.