Sims found not guilty of assault

By LeAnn R. Ralph

MENOMONIE — A Dunn County jury has found a 26-year-old man not guilty of the sexual assault of a mentally ill victim in Wheeler.

Following a two-day jury trial October 11 and 12, Daniel Sims was acquitted of one count of second degree sexual assault of a mentally ill victim and one count of third degree sexual assault in connection with an incident that allegedly occurred in Wheeler in June of 2011.

Sims’ attorney, Kerry Kelm, focused her defense on DNA evidence, or rather, on the lack of DNA evidence linking Sims to the alleged victim.

According to the criminal complaint, investigators learned that the 25-year-old woman suffered from a mental deficiency, which rendered her incapable of living on her own and that she was living in a group home in Elk Mound.

The complaint states that the woman told Sims “no” and asked him to stop several times because he was hurting her.

The woman was visiting with relatives in Wheeler at the time.