Jury convicts Montegut man of attempted rape, sexual battery in 2018 case

A Montegut man was found guilty of attempting to rape his home care nurse.

Troy Lee Naquin was convicted by a 12-person jury of attempted third-degree rape and sexual battery March 14 for charges filed Jan. 18, 2018.

Sentencing is set for 9 a.m. April 4 in Judge Timothy Ellender's Courtroom. Prosecutors are seeking a life sentence based on crimes in Naquin's past.

"She's going to take the stand, and she'll have to go through all of it all over again," Prosecutor Brad Doyle said in his opening statements March 13.

The nurse claimed Naquin tried to take her clothes off and inappropriately touched her as she was trying to perform medical duties.

At the time of the charges in 2018, DNA evidence was collected from Naquin that linked him to a 1991 unsolved rape case. That victim didn't know the person who attacked her, and no arrests were made at that time.

Doyle showed jurors images of the multiple bruises on the 2018 victim's body from a struggle with Naquin.

"The allegations or the claims are that he put his fingers in her anus and attempted to rape her," Defense Attorney Abigail Becnel argued in her opening statements. She said the victim's DNA was not found on Naquin.

"Remember, he is on trial only for the offense charged," she said.

More: Ethics questions rise from Terrebonne Parish Republicans' spat

More: Prosecutors in murder trial say that dispute over cooking crack led to killing

Jurors said after the trial they were left with many unanswered questions but that they were confident with their decision.

Asked what convinced him, one juror said the victim's testimony, and that Naquin had pled guilty to another simple rape case, also from the 1990s.

"Her story, her background, the credibility for what she does," a male juror who would not share his name said. "What does she gain by going to court?"

This article originally appeared on The Courier: Jury convicts Montegut man on attempted rape, sexual battery charges