Jury deliberating after closing arguments in Abston rape trial
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Closing arguments in the rape trial of Cleotha Abston began on Thursday morning.
He is accused of raping Alicia Franklin in 2021, one year before being accused of kidnapping and killing Memphis school teacher Eliza Fletcher.
Abston was charged with rape, kidnapping, and unlawful possession of a weapon. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Thursday morning, the jury heard closing arguments from both sides and went over the charges Abston is facing. Both sides rested their case.
During day two of testimony, we heard from Abston’s ex-girlfriend, one of Alicia Franklin’s friends who met her at the hospital after the alleged rape, as well of MPD officers who also met Franklin at the hospital.
Cleotha Abston’s rape trial begins
After days of emotional testimony, both sides made their final pleas to the jury.
The state argues back in 2021, Cleotha Abston put a gun to Alicia Franklin’s neck, placed a shirt over her face, and raped her in a car behind a vacant apartment in Hickory Hill.
“For Cleotha Abston this rape Lasted minutes. For Alicia Franklin, it’s never stopped. It’s never stopped. I need you to see that,” said Paul Hagerman, state prosecutor.
Abston’s defense argued that consensual sex led to an argument over money.
Jury selection underway in Cleotha Abston’s rape case
“So she has no injuries? She has no bruises,” said Juni Ganguli, Abston’s defense attorney. “She has no scratches. She has no abrasions. There’s no redness. There’s no swelling. There’s no physical evidence that indicates that she was raped or kidnaped.”
The states final argument was that Franklin peed on herself before she was raped, proving something traumatic happened.
“She was the victim of a violent rape and kidnapping,” said Hagerman.
Abston’s defense argued in their final statements that this was a prostitution case.
“It’s her body. It’s her choice. However, her lies cannot and should not lead to a conviction,” said Ganguli.
The jury began deliberating on Thursday afternoon.
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