Genoa man acquitted on charges that he had sex with a 17-year-old

Bergman a former assistant wrestling coach at Genoa High School

5/15/2013
Joseph T. Bergman, Jr., 29, of Genoa is an Army Reservist.
Joseph T. Bergman, Jr., 29, of Genoa is an Army Reservist.

BOWLING GREEN – A former assistant wrestling coach at Genoa High School accused of having a sexual encounter with a female student was acquitted today on a charge of sexual battery.

Joseph T. Bergman, Jr., 29, of Genoa broke down in tears as the jury’s verdict was read just after 6:30 p.m. in Wood County Common Pleas Court.

An Army Reservist, Mr. Bergman was arrested by U.S. marshals last May at Fort Leonard Wood Army base in Missouri after a Wood County grand jury indicted him on the third-degree felony. He was accused of having sex with a 17-year-old girl who had been a statistician for the wrestling team inside his car outside the movie theaters at Levis Commons in Perrysburg on March 30, 2012.

During a three-day trial in Wood County Common Pleas Court, defense attorney Stevin Groth contended the charge was based on false allegations that were unsubstantiated by evidence. The jury deliberated for 2.5 hours before returning the not guilty verdict.