State v. Thompson
Montana Supreme Court
792 P.2d 1103 (1990)
Gerald Thompson (defendant), a high school principal and basketball coach, repeatedly threatened a female student that she would not graduate unless she had sex with him; she complied but did not report the encounters until after graduating, nearly a year later. Thompson was indicted for sexual intercourse without consent, with the indictment alleging his threats caused her "great psychological pain and fear." The trial court dismissed those counts, holding that psychological harm alone did not satisfy the statute's "without consent" requirement, and the state appealed.
Whether a defendant may be charged with knowingly having sexual intercourse without consent when the victim was exposed only to great psychological pain or fear, rather than a threat of imminent death or bodily harm.