Jury selection consumed most of the court's day Monday in the trial of a 22-year-old Texarkana man accused of raping his former teacher in 2015.
A jury of eight men and four women was chosen Monday to decide if Vasquez Dominique Hayes is guilty of attacking a woman Nov. 22, 2015, in her Texarkana, Ark., home.
Hayes is charged with two counts of rape, two counts of theft of property, aggravated residential burglary, aggravated robbery and kidnapping.
Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Connie Mitchell and Little Rock defense lawyer Lawrence Walker questioned the panel of prospective jurors on a variety of subjects Monday. Air conditioning issues in the crowded second-floor courtroom at the Miller County courthouse had jurors fanning themselves as the hours passed. Once 12 jurors and two alternates, a man and a woman, were chosen to fill the jury box at about 4 p.m., Circuit Judge Carlton Jones released them for the day.
This morning the jury is expected to hear opening statements and testimony from the first of the state's witnesses.
When Hayes was arrested in 2015, the alleged victim did not realize she had once known her alleged attacker, according to a probable cause affidavit used to create the following account. It wasn't until Hayes' mugshot was published in local news reports that she learned the man wearing sunglasses, gloves and a tightly drawn hoodie had once been a student where she worked as a teacher at a local church.
The woman reported she was opening the door of her home in Texarkana, Ark., to let her barking dog out at approximately 1 a.m. when an armed man allegedly forced himself inside and twice sexually assaulted her. The woman alleges she was made to ride in her own car as Hayes drove it to an ATM and forced her to withdraw $500, wrecking her car slightly along the way. The woman was released by her assailant in the early hours of Nov. 22, 2015, in an Arkansas neighborhood as her attacker sped away in her car.
The trial is expected to take most of the week. For each of two counts of rape, Hayes faces 10 to 40 years or life if convicted. Aggravated residential burglary, aggravated robbery and kidnapping are punishable by 10 to 40 years or life as well. For theft involving the woman's stolen car, Hayes faces three to 10 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000 if convicted. For theft involving the woman's debit card and ATM withdrawal, Hayes faces up to six years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.
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