June 1, 2023
Today, the Utah Supreme Court upheld convictions against Torrey J. Green, who had filed an appeal after a jury convicted him of sexual assault, rape, forcible sexual abuse, sexual battery, and object rape against six different women. Green claimed on appeal that each of the six victims’ cases should have been tried separately—and without the jurors in each separate case being informed that other victims had accused Green of similar crimes. Green also claimed that the trial court improperly admitted hearsay evidence and that his trial attorney performed ineffectively.
The Utah Supreme Court rejected Green’s arguments, concluding that Green’s trial was fair and that the six victims’ cases were tried correctly together. The court’s landmark ruling will also make it easier for prosecutors to admit evidence of similar acts of sexual violence against multiple victims in future sexual assault prosecutions.
Green was a football player at Utah State University and subsequently left USU to attend the Atlanta Falcons training camp. The victims came forward in 2016, citing similar stories of meeting Green online, dating, and then being forced into having sex.
