On this day, Dec. 2, 1991
Examiner Staff Writer 12/1/08
Testimony began in the rape trial of William Kennedy Smith, a nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy.Smith, then a 30-year-old medical student at Georgetown University, is the son of Jean Kennedy Smith, the president’s sister and a former ambassador to Ireland. Smith was accused of sexually assaulting a 29-year-old Florida woman at the Kennedys’ Palm Beach compound. On the night of March 29, Smith went out with his uncle, Sen. Edward Kennedy, and cousin, Patrick Kennedy. Smith met the accuser, who accompanied him back to the estate.
The two walked on the beach, where Smith allegedly tackled and raped her. Smith testified that the sex was consensual. At the trial, the judge barred the testimony of three other women who claimed Smith had assaulted them. Millions of viewers watched the televised trial.
The accuser’s identity was electronically obscured with a large blue dot to protect her privacy. After deliberating for 77 minutes, the jury acquitted Smith. (In an interesting side note, Smith defense attorney Roy Black later married one of the jurors.)
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