By KRWG News
Alamogordo – Two men accused of kidnapping and raping a 24-year-old mother of three have been acquitted by a jury in Alamogordo.
Mark Jackson and James T. Manning were facing up to 70 years in prison if the Otero County jury had not exonerated them on Friday.
The Alamogordo Daily News reported that the men were charged with eight felonies each for the alleged April 2009 incident. Jackson is 39 and Manning is 25 years old.
Twelfth Judicial District Attorney Diana Martwick said the victim did not immediately report the alleged assult but that prosecutors believed her story.
Defense lawyer Todd Holmes says his clients had to "go on the offensive and prove their innocence."
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Information from: Alamogordo Daily News, http://www.alamogordonews.com
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.