Meadow Lakes man admits having sex with a minor

PALMER — The jury began hearing arguments this week in the case of a man who prosecutors say is on tape admitting to having sex with a minor.

Brett A.J. Talmadge is accused of four counts of sexual abuse of a minor occurring at his Meadow Lakes home in 2007. Talmadge was 35 at the time. The alleged victim was 15.

Talmadge and his family were close friends with the girl’s family, Assistant District Attorney Rachel Gernat said Wednesday in her opening statement. The girl baby-sat for Talmadge’s two sons, and the girl’s parents had the “utmost trust in (Talmadge),” Gernat said.

The Talmadges sold their house in 2007 and were packing up to move to Wyoming in September. The girl’s family was going to caravan with the Talmadges down the Alaska Highway, as the girl’s family was moving to Oregon to prepare the girl for a national rodeo in Reno, Nevada.

“Before we moved, Brett Talmadge had sex with me,” the girl testified in court Wednesday.

The sex happened on two separate occasions, the girl said. Both instances happened at Talmadge’s house after the Alaska State Fair and before they left for the Lower 48, she said.

The Talmadges had sold their house but were still living there while they packed their belongings. There were two workers living in a trailer on the property hired to build a foundation for a trailer the new owners were putting there.

The girl went over to help pack. They stopped working for the night and started to cook barbecue. The girl said she went outside to talk to the workers, and Talmadge went with her. The girl said Talmadge later asked his wife to go into town for cigarettes and soda.

The workers offered her a beer, and Talmadge said he didn’t mind if she drank. The girl said she drank and smoked cigarettes at the Talmadge’s house on occasion.

The girl said she drank too much and passed out on a lawn chair. She said the last thing she remembers is looking at Talmadge and seeing the two workers go into their trailer.

Pressed by the defense attorney, Sam Westergren, the girl said she drank 20 to 25 beers and three shots of Jack Daniels. That was a lot for her, but she said she had drank that much before.

When she woke up inside the house on the couch the next morning, she said she was wearing Talmadge’s T-shirt and shorts. The girl said it was not uncommon to sleep on the couch when she was baby-sitting, and she often borrowed shorts and a shirt to sleep in. But, she said, she always wore Talmadge’s wife’s clothing, never his.

Also, she testified she woke up with soreness consistent with intercourse.

“It was just weird. I woke up feeling weird. I don’t remember going inside,” she said.

When she confronted Talmadge, he simply said don’t worry about it, the girl said. She said she didn’t tell her parents because she didn’t want to ruin the relationship between the two families.

The second incident happened a few days later when Talmadge called her to come help pack again. She went to his house, but brought a friend with her.

The girl said Talmadge asked her to come look at something in a camper shell he had on the property. She said the two went to the camper, he asked her to go in first, and Talmadge locked the door behind him.

The girl said Talmadge said he wanted to have sex with her. She said no, but then he threatened to call her parents and tell them about her drinking and smoking, she said. She gave in, and three charges of sexual assault of a minor stemmed from this incident.

“Why did you agree to go with Brett to the trailer alone?” Westergren pressed. “You are not even sure it was Brett that first night, are you?”

After this second incident, the girl said she was going to lock it away and not tell anyone. She was worried about her age, her family’s relationship with the Talmadges, and the Talmadge family, Gernat said.

On the trip down the Alaska Highway, the girl said she largely avoided Talmadge. He tried to come into her tent one night, but she held the zipper shut until he went away. The sex never happened again outside of Alaska, she said.

After they dropped the Talmadges off, the girl’s family went to the house of another family friend living in Wyoming. This woman was like an aunt to the girl, Gernat said, and could tell something was wrong. The girl told this woman what happened, then was convinced to tell her mom.

Later, the girl’s mom — with help from the Wasilla Police — recorded a 2.5-hour long phone conversation she had when she confronted Talmadge. Gernat said the jury will hear two hours of denial and avoidance, but then Talmadge says, “I’m going to kill myself so I might as well tell you,” Gernat said.

Gernat said Talmadge is recorded as saying only one time did he not use protection. He corroborates the incident at the barbecue and says that he is in love with the girl, Gernat says.

“Let me remind you that never once did he deny having sex with a minor,” Gernat said.

Westergren’s defense seemed to be that the prosecution could not prove that the sex happened in Alaska. Westergren also said Talmadge is on the tape saying he had sex with the girl four or five times.

“Why would a defendant say he had sex with her two or three times more than he is charged with?” Westergren asked.

The trial is expected to conclude next week.

Contact Tod d L. Disher at todd.disher@frontiersman.com or 352-2252.