RICHMOND – The state Court of Appeals has rejected a Hopewell man’s request to reverse his 2022 conviction of raping his adopted sister.

In an opinion released Tuesday, the court said Davonn Bassette’s claims of consensual were moot because the victim, who suffers from cognitive impairments, wanted to resist but declined out of fear. The victim also told investigators and testified that Bassette told her to keep quiet about what happened between them.

Bassette was sentenced to 28 years in prison on the rape charge. A related charge of strangulation was dismissed.

In the opinion, the three-judge panel found that evidence presented at Bassette’s trial was “sufficient to establish that Bassette had sexual intercourse with [the victim] against her will and accomplished through intimidation.” The incident took place in July 2021 at the victim’s apartment in Hopewell.

In testimony at the trial, the victim said she and Bassette – both of whom were adopted as children – had engaged in “play-fighting” at her residence before things turned sexual, and that placed her “into a state of fear.”

“[The victim] also testified that, when Bassette began to sexually engage her, she responded ‘yes’ to his sexual proposition only because she was terrified of further violence from Bassette,” the opinion read.

Bassette testified at his trial that he did not think of the victim as his sister, and he also was unaware of her mental state. He claimed she initially resisted when he first kissed her but later indicated at his request that she was “good” with what they were doing.

The victim testified that she knew what sexual intercourse was and described her encounter as “painful.” She also said Bassette remained silent the whole time and later told her not to mention what they did.

According to the appellate court opinion, the prosecution was not required to prove Bassette’s claim that he thought the sex was consensual, only that Bassette intentionally committed the act “and overbore her will” through intimidation.

“Considering testimony and the surrounding circumstances, a reasonable fact finder could conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the sexual intercourse was accomplished through intimidation,” the judges wrote. “Thus, the trial court did not err in denying Bassette’s motions to strike and set aside the verdict.”

At trial, Bassette’s attorney tried to block the jury from considering the victim’s mental capacity as a factor in the case. He claimed that his sister had sex with someone else two days before the incident in her apartment.

At the end of the trial, Circuit Court Judge Allan Sharrett ruled that while the prosecution had failed to prove the victim’s mental state was a factor, the evidence of force and intimidation was enough to send the case to the jury. After deliberation, the jury found Bassette guilty of rape but acquitted him on the strangulation charge..

Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @BAtkinson_PI.

This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Hopewell man’s conviction of raping adopted sister will stand