A 49-year-old Scottsbluff man who was charged with 1st Degree Sexual Assault of a Minor and Intentional Child Abuse- No Injury was found not guilty by a jury of his peers Thursday morning.
Daniel “Danny” Lara Sr. had to wait just 45 minutes for the jury of 12 to return their not guilty verdicts.
Defense Attorney Maren Chaloupka spoke with KNEB News this morning and said, “The jury spoke in 45 minutes that Danny Lara is an innocent man. He was, and still is.”
Court filings also showed that during Wednesday’s portion of the trial, prosecuting attorney Kirk Fellhoulter made a motion to amend the charges, but District Judge Andrea Miller denied that request. Judge Miller also denied Chaloupka’s Wednesday motion for a directed verdict, leaving the matter to be decided by the jury.
Lara was arrested in January, 2021 after statements made by a 13-year-old girl during a forensic interview at CAPStone.
