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Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Boyd Alumni Elana Graham '10 and Agnes Lexis (Botelho) '08 Featured in Las Vegas Review-Journal

On July 12, Boyd alumni Elana Graham '10 and Agnes Lexis (Botelho) '08 were featured in the Las Vegas Review-Journal article Las Vegas man found innocent 8 years later.

The article is about Victor Villalta, who was accused of sexually assaulting two girls eight years ago. The day before his trial, which could have led to a life prison term, a key piece of evidence and a polygraph test led to Villalta's case being dismissed.

"In the fall of 2013, two new prosecutors, Agnes Lexis and Elana Graham, took over the case. As the June 24 trial date neared, Lexis and Graham began prepping their case. Wolfson said the two prosecutors were combing through evidence when they discovered case notes from Detective Smith that questioned the validity of the allegations against Villalta," the article reads. "Prosecutors Lexis and Graham immediately contacted (defense attorney) Hart and offered Villalta a new deal: If he passed a polygraph exam, they would move to dismiss the case. He passed the test with ease on June 23. Instead of picking a jury June 24, Judge Adair dismissed the case. Villalta thanked Lexis and Graham for 'doing the right thing and giving me the opportunity to clear my name.'”