Details surface in Frank Brown rape case

By KELLYN BROWN Chronicle Staff Writer

Prosecutors filed additional information Friday in the case against former Montana State University basketball player Frank Brown, further detailing what they believe happened at his home last month when he allegedly raped a 15-year-old girl.

In the affidavit filed in District Court, Deputy County Attorney Ashley Harrington delved deeper into the circumstances surrounding Brown's relationship with the girl and tried to quash the notion that this was a statutory rape case.

"There has been a lot of speculation about the nature and length of the relationship between the victim and the defendant in this matter," Harrington said Friday. "I hope the additional facts set forth in the charging documents will serve to put that speculation to rest."

Brown, 20, of Las Vegas, was arrested Nov. 23 and is now charged with two counts of rape. The former starting point guard for MSU, who was suspended from the team, has since posted $20,000 and is out on bond.

When charging documents were first filed in Justice Court, it was unclear how long Brown and the alleged victim had known each other. Initial court records indicated 18 months.

But prosecutors now say that although the two met more than a year ago, they didn't form a friendship until August of this year.

On Nov. 6, Brown allegedly raped the girl for the first time at his Remington Way apartment before the team's first exhibition game of the season.

About two weeks later, he allegedly raped her twice at his home, according to court records.

Under Montana law, a 15-year-old can't consent to any sexual relations, but prosecutors emphasized in the affidavit filed Friday that they believe this was more than a statutory rape case.

On Nov. 21, 2004, Brown and his cousin Martrel Johnson, a redshirt sophomore on the MSU basketball team and Brown's roommate, picked up the victim at about 11 p.m., according to court records.

Brown and the girl watched the movie, "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," and shared a bottle of liquor. The girl told police she then passed out and didn't remember anything until she woke up on her parents' neighbor's bathroom floor.

She allegedly didn't know she had had sex. When she began experiencing pain in her genital area, the victim's parents took her to Bozeman Deaconess Hospital. There, a doctor said the victim showed signs of "penetrating trauma" and found the results "strongly suspicious of sexual abuse."

Brown has allegedly acknowledged he had sex with the girl three times and knew she was 15.

He told police that on Nov. 21, the girl was just "a little tipsy," but awake and responsive. However, he also said that, following intercourse, the victim vomited, fell asleep on his couch and he stayed nearby "to make sure that she was breathing," according to court records.

Brown is scheduled to enter a plea to the charges on Dec. 15.

If convicted of rape, Brown faces two years to life in prison.

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