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Prosecutor won’t charge former Rep. Brian Ellis over sex assault claim

  • The Associated Press
Pennsylvania State Capitol building in Harrisburg, Pa

 Matt Rourke / AP Photo

Pennsylvania State Capitol building in Harrisburg, Pa

(Harrisburg) — A county prosecutor won’t charge a state lawmaker who resigned amid an investigation into an allegation that he sexually assaulted a woman.

Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo said Monday that a grand jury recommended no charges against former Rep. Brian Ellis.

The announcement comes seven months after House Republicans stripped Ellis of his committee chairmanship and recommended he resign over an allegation that he had sex with a woman who had resisted his advances before she blacked out.

Ellis, of Butler County, resigned in March, but through his lawyers has denied the allegation.

The woman’s lawyer has said her client believes she was drugged while she was out having a drink with a friend and has no memory of the ensuing 12 hours, before she awoke naked in Ellis’ bed.

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