Clinton man cleared in abuse case

A “Not Guilty” verdict in a Clinton abuse case. A Clinton County District Court jury found 43-year-old David DeSimone innocent of assaulting a 13-year-old girl, the second not-guilty verdict. A district court jury in February found DeSimone not guilty of charges he molesting a 16-year-old girl. Assistant Clinton County Attorney Gary Strausser says the type of physical abuse in both cases wouldn’t yield evidence like DNA or blood, and the jury in this week’s case didn’t believe there was enough proof DeSimone had improperly touched the girls. In fact, DeSimone told the jury that it was the girl who touched him first.