Trial of teen accused of assaulting 87-year-old Waukesha woman nearing end

WAUKESHA, Wis. (CBS 58) -- As court proceedings near their conclusion, attorneys focused on DNA and video evidence during the third day of the trial of the teen accused of sexually assaulting an 87-year-old Waukesha woman last year.

Khalil Perry faces multiple charges for allegedly threatening a Waukesha woman with a knife outside the Waukesha Public Library in November 2021, forcing her into a sex act and stole her car and other belongings.

Attorneys presented the jury the interrogation video between detectives and Perry. The detective who conducted the interrogation said although Perry was just 14 at the time of the alleged incident, they believed he was competent to be questioned.

"You felt that, through [Perry's] answers, the way he responded to you, that he was in a state where you felt that he could then waive, potentially, his Miranda rights and speak with you furthers?" Perry's defense attorney asked Waukesha Police Detective Ken Stucker.

"Absolutely," Stucker replied.

Perry told detectives he was looking for work when he was at the Waukesha Public Library. The alleged victim asked Perry for help dropping off books. Perry helped but then used a knife to threaten the woman.

"I didn't know her at all," Perry told the detective in the interrogation. "She was so old I thought I could take advantage of her and take her car, and that was like, the most devilish, I don't know what came over me."

When asked by detectives, Perry denied forcing the woman into a sexual act.

The attorneys then focused on the DNA samples which were collected from both Perry's and the woman's clothing and body.

"I would summarize it as it is at least one quadrillion times more likely that it's a mixture of Khalil Perry and [the alleged victim] than if it's a mixture of Khalil Perry and an unknown individual," Olga Leider of the Wisconsin State Crime Lab told the court.

Perry's defense attorneys attempted to cast doubt on the DNA results and how those results show near certainty of connecting Perry and the woman to the samples, but scientifically, cannot say so with 100% certainty.

"You're not saying there's a match when we talk about the DNA profiles in this case, correct?" Perry's attorney asked.

"Correct," Leider replied.

The jury was also presented with surveillance video showing the vehicle Perry and the woman were in, corroborating the narrative shared by officials.

Closing arguments are expected Friday.