Ellis won't face sex charges
A grand jury investigating sexual assault allegations made against former state Rep. Brian Ellis recommended that no criminal charges be filed against him, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
A Dauphin County grand jury was impaneled in May to investigate allegations of a 2015 sexual assault lodged against Ellis by a female state employee in a formal complaint more than a year ago.
Ellis, 50, of Butler Township, has steadfastly denied the allegations but resigned from his position in March, citing it as the best option for his health and family.
Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo declined to comment Friday about the grand jury's decision, according to the newspaper, but a report outlining its reasoning is expected to be released Monday.
The woman did not immediately file a report when the assault allegedly occurred in October of 2015, but she went to a hospital the next day.
She told the Philadelphia Inquirer and The Caucus in an interview that her delayed reporting of the incident and memory lapses of key witnesses were among the factors leading to the grand jury's decision not to press charges.
While a grand jury recommends whether charges should be filed based on evidence presented to it, the final decision to do so remains with the prosecutor.
The formal complaint was issued against Ellis on March 12 in which the accuser said he sexually assaulted her in his Harrisburg town home while she was blacked out. In the complaint, she said she had refused sexual advances from Ellis in the past, and after the assault, he told her: “We had sex.”
According to the complaint, the woman has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from the altercation.
“We do not wish to comment,” Brian Ellis' attorney, Erik Anderson, said Friday night.
