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Ex-probation officer's trial begins today

The trial of former Hill County Probation Officer Stephen Mills will begin this morning in District Court at Havre.

Mills, born in 1965, is charged with raping the mother of a juvenile offender who was under his supervision.

Jury selection was held Monday, and Judge Katherine Bidegaray of Sidney, who is hearing the case, listened Tuesday to motions from the two sides.

Mills was arrested in the early morning hours of Jan. 12, 2014, after Havre Police received a phone call from a woman who said she had been raped. He was charged with one count of sexual intercourse without consent and one count of attempted sexual intercourse without consent.

The alleged victim told officers she was at a bar and had a fight with a friend, and Mills, who was also at the bar, offered her a ride home.

Instead, he took her to his apartment. He invited her in and forced her to have sex, prosecutors allege.

Prosecutors said at first Mills denied having sex with the woman, then admitted it but insisted it was consensual.

After being arrested, Mills resigned from his job.

The trial is expected to last the week, jurors were told.

Assistant Montana Attorney General Joel Thompson will prosecute the case, replacing Hill County Attorney Gina Dahl who withdrew from the case because of a conflict of interest.

This is the second time jury selection has taken place.

In March potential jurors were summoned. After two days of questions, defense attorney Jeremy Yellen insisted his client would not get a fair trial from that jury pool.

 

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