Two cases spring from grand jury trial

Two sexual assault cases filed against a Priest River man resulted from information uncovered in a grand jury trial in May.

Norman David Browne, 66, is facing felony charges of lewd conduct, and sexual battery against a child. If convicted, Browne could see a sentence of up to $50,000 or life in prison for lewd conduct, and 25 years with up to a $50,000 fine for sexual battery.

Allegations come from two victims who were also involved with the grand jury case, the records of which remain under seal. Despite the seal, information in a criminal complaint for lewd conduct alleges that Browne committed previous sexual offenses against the victims.

The cases emerging from the grand jury trial involve two victims who came forward to law enforcement five years after the events took place. In an interview with a victim advocate coordinator, one of the victims said she didn’t come forward earlier because

“It was a one-time thing and when something like that happens, you want to pretend it didn’t happen,” she said.

The victim also said she felt embarrassed about what happened, and kept pushing it out of her mind to the point where she “barely thought about it.”

Those memories resurfaced after a conversation with her mother in February 2020. Browne, according to the victim’s statements to Bonner County Sheriff’s Detective Barry Reinink, asked the victim’s mother if she could spend the night at his residence in Priest River around Christmas in 2015 where the victim was attending a bonfire with her family. That evening, Browne insisted they sleep in the same bed. It was there that he restrained the victim with one arm while assaulting her with the other for minutes.

The other alleged victim told officials that Browne inappropriately touched her through her clothing while she was watching a movie at his house in late 2015.

The two cases against Browne are progressing through the court process together. First District Judge Barbara Buchanan received authority over the cases after a preliminary hearing on February 3 this year.

Browne hired legal counsel for his defense. Mediation is scheduled for Nov. 16 even though there has been a trend of delayed proceedings in this case.

Sexual assault crimes can be reported and prosecuted even if they have not happened in the recent past, this is called a “statute of limitations.” Every crime has a different statute of limitations, some sex crimes statute of limitations never expire - meaning a victim can come forward when they are ready to report the crime to law enforcement. Confiding in a trusted person can be the first step taken before involving the justice system. For more information on statute of limitations, web search the crime you are interested in followed by “Idaho Statute of Limitations.” To report a crime like this to the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office, call their non-emergency number at 208-265-5525.