A motion to overturn the conviction of an Allegheny County man serving time for rape was denied on Monday by a Westmoreland County judge.
Judge Rita Hathaway ruled that a witness testifying yesterday for the defense was not credible and that claims made by Frank Roy Dapra's public defender didn't rise to the level necessary to overturn his client's conviction.
Dapra, 29, of McKeesport was sentenced in March to 7 1⁄2 to 20 years in prison for raping a then-22-year-old Trafford woman on July 15, 2010, in her home.
Joseph Talarico, 24, testified yesterday that while watching a football game with the victim at a bar, she told him that she hadn't been raped.
Talarico is an inmate in Allegheny County Jail. His credibility came into question when his testimony included an incorrect date for the game and name of the opposing team he was watching when the victim allegedly spoke to him about the case.
Public Defender L. Abraham Smith was seeking a new trial for Dapra based, in part, on information Talarico provided to police.
Dapra has maintained his innocence.
He was acquitted of charges that he stole money and pills from the victim's purse after the rape and used her credit card without permission.
