Jury Deadlocks In Trial In Alleged Rape Of Teen

Jurors spent several hours Wednesday trying to decide if Shawn Herbert Sternberg of Hayden Lake was guilty of raping a teenage girl during a party a year ago.

At about 9 p.m., they gave up, deadlocked, and Judge Gary Haman declared a mistrial.

The state has until April 21 to decide whether to bring Sternberg to trial again.

The prosecution lacked eyewitnesses and physical evidence of the rape, but the victim, now 17, testified that Sternberg, 19, had sex with her against her will.

Sternberg’s attorney, Glen Walker, tried to portray the victim as a liar by pointing out inconsistencies in her story.

The alleged incident occurred at a party on Feb. 4, 1994, at the home of a friend of Sternberg’s.