A pediatrician testified Tuesday that no signs of physical abuse were discovered during an examination of a pre-teen girl who claimed she was raped multiple times by an Allegheny Township man in 2019.
Dr. Jennifer Wolford, a child abuse specialist at UPMC Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, told jurors that lack of evidence is normal in a majority of cases in which juveniles are sexually assaulted.
“Generally, there is a normal exam and where nothing definitive or diagnostic is expected,” Wolford testified during the second day of the rape and sexual assault trial of Eric Wright.
Wright, 49, is charged with more than 50 offenses related to allegations made by three juveniles and three adult women. They all claim they were victims of sexual assault and rapes dating to the early 2000s and continuing until 2019.
Wolford testified that, in October 2019, she examined a girl who told police Wright raped her at least three times between June and August of that year. Wolford said the girl’s claims could not be discounted by the lack of physical evidence.
“Studies show that, 77% of the time, we don’t have physical evidence of sexual assault,” Wolford testified.
Wright has denied the allegations.
In court on Tuesday, three more women testified they were sexually assaulted by Wright.
One accused Wright of forcibly raping her.
Another of the women described a bizarre sexual demand by Wright.
“That’s exactly what happened,” she responded to questions from defense attorney Bill Difenderfer. “What you’re trying to say is it didn’t happen, but it did happen.”
Two more women are expected to testifywhen the trial resumes Wednesday.
