David Hoose pointed out that the charges came during the administration of former DA Elizabeth Scheibel, with whom he has locked horns in several high profile cases.
Glenn Cooke listens to arguments during a hearing in his rape case in Hampshire Superior Court on Thursday.NORTHAMPTON – A judge asked the prosecution probing questions Thursday during a hearing to determine whether rape charges will stand against former Hopkins Academy coach Glenn Cooke.
Cooke, 46, of Hadley, coached the girls basketball team at the school for approximately 20 years and served as the girls softball coach as well. He is facing four counts of rape involving a girl on the softball team in 2002 and 2003. As terms of his release prior to trial, Cooke cannot coach and must stay away from the alleged victim and her family.
In arguing his motion to dismiss the charges, defense lawyer David P. Hoose told Judge Peter A. Velis that the grand jury heard only selective evidence before it issued the indictments last year.
“The grand jury was sold a bill of goods,” Hoose said. “It did not have the complete picture.”
Hoose said there is no evidence that the girl, who was 25 when she testified before the grand jury, ever used the word “rape” when talking about her interaction with Cooke during the intervening years. She was 17 at the time of the alleged rape.
“She calls a former teacher and talks about having sex with an older man,” he said. “She never once says it was forced or unwanted in any way.”
During the first incident, Hoose said, the girl left a June 2002 party with Cooke and had sex in a cornfield. The second time was later that summer at Cooke’s house. According to Hoose, the girl told friends she was afraid Cooke would retaliate against her as a player on the team.
“She loved softball,” he said. “It was her life.”
In January 2010, prior to going to the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office with her complaint, the alleged victim sent Cooke a letter telling him if he did not quit his job as coach within 10 days she would say she was induced to have sex with him, according to Hoose.
“Frankly, your honor, it’s an extortion letter,” Hoose told Velis.
Noting the letter was drafted with help from the woman’s brother, Hoose said it referenced a law – inducing a person under the age of 18 to have sex – that is seldom used by prosecutors.
“The first time she claimed rape by force was after the first time she met with the DA’s office,” he said. “Something happened in which this became forcible rape.”
Hoose was careful to point out that the charges came during the administration of former Northwestern District Attorney Elizabeth D. Scheibel, with whom he has locked horns in several high profile cases. In the case involving University of Massachusetts student Jason Vassell, a black man charged with stabbing two white men on campus, Hoose accused Scheibel’s office of meting out justice along racial lines.
Scheibel did not run for re-election last year and has been replaced by David E. Sullivan.
Assistant District Attorney Carrie Russell told Velis that the girl did testify she tried to resist Cooke, particularly on one occasion in the girls locker room when he allegedly forced her to have oral sex.
“She said, ‘It was the most disgusting thing I ever had to do in my life,’ ” Russell said.
Russell acknowledged, however, that the grand jury was not shown the woman’s reference to the archaic inducement law in her letter to Cooke or the fact that she cited only one of the four alleged rapes. Velis pressed her on those points, saying they could be construed as crucial omissions.
“Why weren’t (the other rapes) in the letter?” he asked. “Why wasn’t the word ‘rape’ in the letter?”
Velis took the matter under advisement. The trial is tentatively scheduled for November.
