Jury breaks deadlock on charges of statutory rape, distributing birth control pills

By Harry Franklin  State Editor

A Warm Springs, Ga., man was acquitted of statutory rape and distributing a dangerous drug — birth control pills, in a three-day trial that ended Wednesday in Meriwether County Superior Court.

James Cuddington Jr, 31, an engineer with CSX Transportation Inc., was acquitted of statutory rape of a 15-year-old girl between Jan. 1-March 9, 1997.

The girl alleged that he gave her the birth control pills and the attacks occurred five times during that period.

Two hours into deliberation, shortly after 5 p.m. Wednesday, the jury notified Judge Quillian Baldwin that it had reached a verdict. Twice jurors had sent messages to Baldwin that they were hopelessly deadlocked, but the judge told them to resume deliberation.

“Our defense was that he just didn’t do it,” said attorney Frank K. Martin of Columbus, who represented Cuddington. Martin said he called character witnesses on Cuddington’s behalf and anti-character witnesses to testify about the girl and her mother.

“In my whole career,” Martin said, “I’ve never seen a district attorney bring charges for that” — distributing birth control pills. “It is a misdemeanor charge.”

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Rudjard Hayes.