David Dunn
David Dunn
Photo of David Dunn in court [0]
Personal Life
David Dunn’s two older sisters testified on Tuesday, July 3, 2018 that he is a much-loved younger brother who had, prior to the rape, lived a life devoted to public service.
Maureen Morin of Mesa, Arizona said her brother had been a Boy Scout and an altar boy and described him as bright, precocious and generous.
“I can honestly say he always put others first,” she said.
Morin also said her brother was “never one to party,” and she believes a party culture and alcohol were the true culprits.
Mindy McNeal, also of Mesa, described Dunn as a go-to guy for family and friends and “socially naive.”
She and her siblings had always thought of him as asexual, she said.
Two years ago, McNeal said, her brother had been prescribed testosterone to boost low levels, and he began experiencing physical and other changes after that.
It may have contributed to her brother’s current situation, McNeal said.
However, she added, “I know that he would never intentionally hurt anyone.”
Criminal History
During the sentencing hearing, Dunn apologized and said, “I would give anything to take back the events of that night."
Dunn faced a prison term of between 15 and 67 years after a jury found him guilty on May 18, 2018 of aggravated criminal sexual assault, criminal sexual assault and aggravated criminal sexual abuse.
He sentenced Dunn to 15 years on each of two counts and six years on a third, all to be served consecutively resulting in a total prison sentence of 36 years.
Bruno said he plans to file a motion within a few days seeking reconsideration of the sentence.
The 22-year-old probationary firefighter Dunn assaulted recalled thinking how satisfying it would have been to kill him after the rape but said he also made a decision then and there about what kind of person he would be — one who does the right thing.
And, he said to Dunn, “death is too easy a punishment.”
The victim said while he did the right thing that night, Dunn inadvertently did, too, in selecting him, because he didn’t let shame and embarrassment deter him from seeking justice.
“If I wasn’t your first victim, I will be your last,” he said to Dunn in his victim impact statement.
David Dunn raped the man after a going away party.
He had been planning to leave the community in the spring of 2017 to take a fire-chief job in Alaska and hosted going-away party at his home the night of April 1-2, 2017 when prosecutors said he gave an incapacitating drug to the victim and then raped him.
Prior to the rape, he had also slipped Cialis, an erectile dysfunction drug, into the victim’s drink, according to Assistant State’s attorney, Troy Lozar.
Lozar said the victim had been intoxicated, and Dunn administered a bag of saline solution intravenously under the guise of helping him prevent a bad hangover.
A witness from the state crime lab testified at Dunn’s trial that one of two empty IV bags recovered from his trash contained ketamine, a drug sometimes used to sedate children undergoing minor procedures but also used illegally as a date rape drug for its ability to incapacitate and sedate victims and blur their memories.
Lozar acknowledged that Dunn has family love and support, lacks a prior criminal record and has given much of his life to his work as an emergency responder.
“Those are all things to his credit,” he said.
Dunn was also in a position of trust, both in the community and with his victim, Lozar said, “but he has absolutely betrayed that trust.”
Lozar rejected the idea that a party culture was in any way at fault, saying if there was a party culture, Dunn created it.
The prosecutor further rejected any notion that Dunn’s action was just a mistake, pointing out that Dunn even videotaped the rape.
“This was a plunge into one of the darkest crimes a person could commit on another human being,” Lozar said.