Lady Justice.
A Collegeville man was found guilty this week of raping and sexually assaulting a drunk and unconscious teenager after a night of drinking with friends in Skippack Township four years ago.
Zachary Thomas Brandt, 25, of the 400 block of Bridge Street, was convicted by a jury after more than four hours of deliberation and two days of testimony, according to The Reporter. He faces up to 57 years in prison on the charges, per the report.
In addition to rape and sexual assault of the 19-year-old, Brandt was also found guilty of aggravated indecent assault of an unconscious person and indecent assault in connection with the July 22, 2020 crime that occurred at a home on the 1000 block of Collegeville Road, per reports.
His bail was immediately revoked upon conviction by Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge Steven T. O’Neill, and Brandt remains in Montgomery County jail while he awaits sentencing later this year, according to the article.
“She was drunk. She was high. She was passed out and he took advantage. He saw an opportunity and he jumped on it,” Assistant District Attorney Meghan Carney told the jury. “She was not participating in that sex act. She was blacked out. She didn’t know what was going on. She did not want to have sex with the defendant. She did not consent to have sex with the defendant because she was unconscious.”
However, per reports, Brandt said it was consensual. His attorney, Thomas C. Egan III, argued that his client and the victim made “alcohol-fueled decisions” and it was a “sad” incident, according to the report.
On July 22, 2020 at 6:24 a.m., the victim and her 20-year-old friend went to Pennsylvania State Police barracks in Skippack to file a sexual assault report, police said.
It was revealed during the trial that Brandt, another individual and the victim were at the 20-year-old friend’s house for heavy drinking the night of July 21 that went into the early morning hours.
The victim went to a bedroom to pass out at some point in the evening, prosecutors said. Prior to that, per court documents, she got so drunk and high that she got sick, and did not recall what occurred after she passed out.
When her 20-year-old friend walked into the bedroom around 5 a.m., the friend found Brandt having sex with the naked victim, who was unaware of the act, per reports. Brandt then told the friend, “It wasn’t what it looked like,” per the affidavit.
Read more on the conviction here.
