An Iowa woman learned her accused rapist has attacked other women. So why does he keep getting plea
TRIGGER WARNING > article contains descriptions of sexual violence; discretion is advised
The 41-year-old West Des Moines woman had been talking with the 26-year-old farmhand from Gilbert for months on Instagram and MeetMe, two social networking apps.
Shanna Harker was lonely after losing her mother in 2017. Mason Reilly wrote that he was looking for someone he could trust who didn't play games.
When Reilly invited Harker to a tractor pull near Story City and camping at Little Wall Lake last July, Harker figured it was a safe enough venue, with lots of other campers around.
But once they were alone inside a tent, Harker said Reilly became aggressive, then violent. She said Reilly raped her that night, leaving her crying and with bruising all over her legs.
...Kerri True-Funk, director of operations at the Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault in Des Moines, said Judge McGlynn could refuse the plea deal brokered by the county attorney's office, but that would be unusual.
"The reality is so much of this is at the discretion of elected prosecutors," True-Funk said. "Plea deals keep your win records cleaner. Trials are costly. And unlike with drug crimes, no fees in sexual assault cases go to the county.
..."From our standpoint, that's very discouraging," she said.
