The Latest: McAllister sticks with re-election bid

MONTPELIER, Vt. – The Latest on the sex crimes trial of Vermont state Sen. Norman McAllister

4 p.m.

Embattled Vermont state Sen. Norman McAllister says he has no plans to drop his re-election bid despite new allegations he did not include the needed number of signatures of registered voters when he filed nominating papers last month.

McAllister filed his petition May 25 with 103 signatures — just a bit more than the 100 required by law. Now state Rep. Carolyn Branagan — who is challenging McAllister and Sen. Dustin Degree for the Republican nomination in their Franklin County district — says some of McAllister’s signatures are not valid.

County Clerk Jim Pelkey says even if that’s true, there’s nothing do to about it, because the time for challenging nominating petitions has passed.

McAllister says he has no knowledge of any faulty signatures on his petition, and that he’ll remain a candidate in the Aug. 9 primary.

McAllister was on trial two weeks ago for two counts of felony sexual assault, only to have the state abort the trial by dropping the charges. He faces a second trial on sex charges later this year.

3:25 p.m.

The prosecutor in Vermont state Sen. Norman McAllister’s aborted rape trial says his accuser lied just once in her testimony, and expressed remorse immediately afterward.

In an interview Tuesday with The Associated Press, Deputy State’s Attorney Diane Wheeler provided the clearest details yet on why she dropped two felony sexual assault charges against the Franklin County Republican.

Wheeler says the 21-year-old woman told a state’s attorney’s office staff member just after the first day of testimony ended that she had lied when she denied in testimony that she had befriended and kissed a man she worked with on McAllister’s farm.

Defence lawyer Brooks McArthur has maintained that the real reason charges were dropped was that there were numerous inconsistencies in the witness’ sworn statements.