Trial starts in rape, abduction case

A trial began Monday for a Springfield man accused of abducting and raping an escort, who then shot him in the face.

Duane Portman Sr., 45, has pleaded not guilty to six counts of rape, one count of abduction and one count of aggravated robbery. Portman was shot in the face in the early morning hours of Sept. 2, at his former business, Labelz 4 Less.

During opening arguments Monday, his attorney Kevin Lennon, said Portman has no criminal record, served eight years in the U.S. Air Force and has four children. He admitted his client called the woman, an escort from Dayton, to meet him at his business in the 1600 block of East Main Street.

Portman claimed the two were attempting to have consensual intercourse and the woman began fidgeting with her purse. Lennon said his client became nervous, pulled out a gun and placed it on a table. Then, Portman’s attorney said, the escort grabbed the weapon.

“My client says he was in the process of standing up and that’s the last thing he remembers until he wakes up a period of time after and no one’s around and he’s covered in blood,” Lennon said.

Assistant Clark County Prosecutor Amy Smith argued the shooting was in self-defense, that the suspect was reportedly holding the woman against her will after she became concerned and tried to leave. She said Portman allegedly pulled the gun and raped the woman repeatedly until she could get the weapon away from him.

“Think about the amount of feat that it takes to say something to get yourself out,” Smith said. “To be so afraid as to try to take a gun away from your assailant, to be so terrified that the only means of escape is to pull the trigger.”

Portman drove himself to Springfield Regional Medical Center where he was examined and then transferred to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton. Dr. Kenneth Keller, who worked in the local emergency room at the time, testified Portman didn’t give more details when asked about his injuries, stating only that he has been shot.

The alleged victim, according to prosecutors, fled to an awaiting friend’s car. She then went back to Dayton before going to Good Samaritan Hospital, and reporting the rape and the shooting. Springfield police detectives eventually connected the two cases.

Testimony continues in the trial today.

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