A Bulloch County jury returned a ‘Not Guilty’ verdict Friday after a day and a half trial.
Ishmael Daniels was arrested by the Statesboro Police Department in October 2023. Warrants filed in the Clerk of Court’s office alleged that between 12:00 a.m. and 3:00 a.m. on October 6, 2023, Daniels forced himself upon a female victim.
After his arrest, defense counsel sought bond for Daniels, which was opposed by the District Attorney’s Office – led by Daphne Totten – and denied by a judge. The District Attorney’s Office indicted Daniels on one Count of Rape two months later in December 2023.
In September 2024, Assistant District Attorney Candace DeLoach filed a notice to seek Recidivist Punishment on Daniels, should he be convicted, on the basis of two former felony convictions:
- 2014 – Felony Sale of Marijuana and Possession of Oxycodone – Sentence: 10 years probation
- 2019 – Felony Possession of Cocaine, Possession of a Drug Object – Sentence: 3 years probation
Recidivist Punishment with two prior convictions means Daniels would receive the maximum sentence. For Rape, that sentence is Life in prison.
Leading up to the trial, defense counsel filed motions which suggested that Daniels and the female had a ‘long-term sexual relationship,’ previously engaged in sexual intercourse, and that the sexual encounter on October 6, 2023 was consensual.
After a full day of presentations from the state, jurors began deliberating Friday and returned a NOT GUILTY verdict before 1:00 p.m. Senior Judge Robbie Turner presided over the trial.
Daniels was held in the Bulloch County Jail for 388 days leading up to the start of the trial. He will be released Friday.
