CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The first criminal case linked to New Hampshire’s sprawling child abuse scandal ended in a mistrial Tuesday after a jury deadlocked on charges against a former youth detention facility staffer accused of raping a teenage girl in 2001.
Victor Malavet, 62, is one of nine men charged in the 5-year-old investigation into abuse allegations at the Sununu Youth Services Center in Manchester, though unlike the others, he worked at a separate state-run facility in Concord.
After roughly 11 hours of deliberations over three days, jurors said they were deadlocked on the 12 counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault.
Jurors had indicated they were deadlocked two hours earlier, but Judge Dan St. Hilaire instructed them to continue. He declared a mistrial after receiving a note from the jury stating: “After additional time with thoughtful deliberation, we are still unable to come to a unanimous decision on any charges.”
During the four-day trial, Natasha Maunsell, who was 15 and 16 when she was held at the facility in 2001 and 2002, testified that testified that Malavet frequently arranged to be alone with her in a candy storage room, the laundry room and other locations and repeatedly raped her.
“I remember having this gut wrenching feeling that this is never going to end. This is never going to stop, and it’s going to continue the same way every time,” she testified.
Malavet did not testify, and his attorneys called no witnesses in his defense. But jurors heard him deny the allegations Thursday during the testimony of a state police officer who had been authorized to secretly record her interview with him in April 2021.
“The only relationship I had with her, and all the kids, was just a professional relationship,” he said.
Malavet’s attorneys argued that Maunsell made up the allegations in order to get money from a lawsuit. Maunsell is among more than 1,100 former residents who have filed suits alleging abuse spanning six decades and has received about $150,000 in loans in advance of a settlement.
“It’s all lies. Money changes everything, but it can’t change the truth,” defense attorney Jaye Duncan said in her closing argument.
Both sides declined to comment after the mistrial was declared. The judge said a status conference would be held before the trial is rescheduled. In a statement, Attorney General John Formella called the outcome disappointing but said his office remains committed to prosecuting abusers.
In the only civil case to go to trial so far, a jury awarded David Meehan $38 million in May for abuse he says he suffered at the Youth Development Center in the 1990s, though the verdict remains in dispute.
Together, the two trials highlight the unusual dynamic of having the state attorney general’s office simultaneously prosecute those accused of committing offenses and defend the state. While attorneys for the state spent much of Meehan’s trial portraying him as a violent child, troublemaking teenager and a delusional adult, state prosecutors relied on Mansell’s testimony in the criminal case.
The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they’ve been sexually assaulted unless they come forward publicly as Maunsell has done.
During the trial, Maunsell acknowledged that she denied having been sexually assaulted when asked in 2002, 2017 and 2019. She said she lied the first time because she was still at the facility and feared retaliation, and again in the later years because she didn’t think anyone would believe her.
“It had been so long that I didn’t think anybody would even care,” she said. “I didn’t think it would matter to anyone … so I kept it in for a long time.”
Victor Malavet, right, stands with defense attorneys Zosia Buse, left, and Jaye Duncan, center, as the judge directs the jury to continue with deliberations before later declaring a mistrial, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, at Merrimack County Superior Court, in Concord, N.H. (Damien Fisher/InDepthNH via AP, Pool)
Victor Malavet, left, stands with defense attorney Zosia Buse, right, as the judge directs the jury to continue with deliberations before later declaring a mistrial, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, at Merrimack County Superior Court, in Concord, N.H. (Damien Fisher/InDepthNH via AP, Pool)
Natasha Maunsell sits in Merrimack County Superior Court in Concord, N.H., on Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, during a break in her testimony against Victor Malavet, a former youth detention center staffer charged with sexually assaulting her in 2001. The Associated Press does not typically name those who say they were sexually assaulted unless they come forward publicly as Maunsell has done. (AP Photo/Holly Ramer)
Victor Malavet looks behind him during his trial at Merrimack County Superior Court in Concord, N.H., on Monday, Aug. 26, 2024. Malavet, a former state employee is charged in connection with the attorney general's probe of the Sununu Youth Services Center in Manchester. (David Lane/Union Leader via AP, Pool)
BALTIMORE (AP) — Lamar Jackson was solid in Baltimore's biggest game of the season so far.
Then, after one of the star quarterback's rare slip-ups, one of his teammates delivered the play of the day.
Jackson threw three touchdown passes and Marlon Humphrey scored on a fourth-quarter interception return to help the Ravens pull even with Pittsburgh atop the AFC North with a 34-17 victory over the Steelers on Saturday.
Pittsburgh (10-5) would have clinched the division with a victory, but now the teams are deadlocked after the Ravens (10-5) won for just the second time in the last 10 games in this series. Baltimore clinched a playoff berth. The Steelers had already done so.
“It was cool to get a pick-6, but clinching a spot in the playoffs, to beat the Steelers, I'm just happy that the guys came in, put in the work, and we just took care of business,” Humphrey said. “I felt that this team has had our number over the years. Just take care of business, man. I felt like the performance we put on wasn't perfect, but I felt like that's what we were supposed to do.”
Russell Wilson threw two touchdown passes, the second of which tied the game at 17 with 5:14 left in the third quarter. Jackson answered with a 7-yard scoring strike to Mark Andrews, and after Pittsburgh turned the ball over on downs, a 44-yard run by Derrick Henry put the Ravens in the red zone.
That drive came to nothing when Jackson was intercepted for just the fourth time this season, but then Humphrey — who was celebrating the recent birth of his son Duke — picked off Wilson and went 37 yards to the end zone to give Baltimore a cushion in a series that’s been razor-thin of late. The previous nine games between the Steelers and Ravens were decided by seven points or fewer.
“My whole family's in town to help out with my wife and everything,” Humphrey said. “I was texting her before. I'm supposed to go pick her up from the hospital, discharge her with the baby. So there's a lot of just great things that happened this week.”
Jackson improved to 2-4 against Pittsburgh as a starter. This was his first time facing the Steelers at home since 2020.
“I feel like we've been busting our behind all season long, had ups and downs throughout this whole season, but to clinch a playoff against a great team like that, that's great,” Jackson said. “That means we're moving in the right direction.”
Henry rushed for 162 yards.
Pittsburgh entered the game with a plus-18 margin in turnovers, but the Ravens had the edge in that department Saturday. Baltimore recovered three of its own fumbles and had two big takeaways.
“We didn’t control the run game. We never did. When you don’t, you’ve got to do some splash plays or win the turnover battle in a significant way, and we didn’t do that either,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. “There were some balls on the ground that we didn’t get. Then obviously we turned the ball over going in -- it took seven points off the board -- and they had a pick-6. The rest is history, as they say.”
Jackson found Isaiah Likely for a 9-yard touchdown to open the scoring. Wilson answered with a 1-yard scoring pass to MyCole Pruitt, and the Steelers appeared poised to take the lead when the veteran quarterback broke loose for a 19-yard run in Baltimore territory.
But Ar'Darius Washington delivered a punishing hit on Wilson at the end of that play, jarring the ball loose. Kyle Van Noy recovered for the Ravens at the Baltimore 4.
The Ravens then drove 96 yards and took a 14-7 lead on Jackson's 14-yard touchdown toss to Rashod Bateman.
Wilson threw a 12-yard TD to Cordarrelle Patterson to tie it in the third.
Jackson set a team record with his 37th touchdown pass of the season, and he's now up to a career high of 3,787 yards.
Ravens receiver Zay Flowers had five catches for 100 yards, surpassing 1,000 on the season.
Henry has exceeded 1,500 yards rushing for the fourth time. He's now up to 1,636, a mark he's only surpassed once — in his 2,027-yard campaign of 2020.
Steelers CB Joey Porter Jr. injured his calf, and WR Ben Skowronek hurt his hip. ... Baltimore RB Justice Hill left the game because of a concussion.
Both teams play on Christmas Day to wrap up stretches of three games in 11 days. Pittsburgh hosts Kansas City on Wednesday and Baltimore plays at Houston.
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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson, left, gestures while scrambling against Baltimore Ravens defensive tackle Broderick Washington during the first half of an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens tight end Mark Andrews (89) celebrates with wide receiver Rashod Bateman (7) after scoring a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers reacts after making a catch against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the second half of an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry runs with the ball against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first half of an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry busts a long run against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the second half of an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Pittsburgh Steelers running back Cordarrelle Patterson (84) catches a touchdown pass as Baltimore Ravens linebacker Malik Harrison defends during the second half of an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh talks to an official during the second half of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin looks on during the second half of an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, left, and wide receiver Rashod Bateman (7) react after connecting for a touchdown pass and catch against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first half of an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson throws a pass against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first half of an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey (44) celebrates his pick-6 interception score with teammates during the second half of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson, bottom right, hits the turf as Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey, left, returns an interception for a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
