A man charged with the rape of a patient at Edgewood Riverview Nursing Home in Lucasville in October 2007, was arraigned in the Scioto County Common Pleas Court of Judge Howard H. Harcha III, Friday morning.

David S. Jenkins, 36, of McDermott, arrived at the court at 11 a.m., accompanied by family members and his attorney, Jim Banks of Columbus.

"We entered a not-guilty plea, and they will let us know when a date has been set for his next appearance," Banks said. "Then there will be a first pre-trial hearing and possibly a second pre-trial hearing if we haven't worked anything out, and then a trial."

Scioto County prosecutor Mark Kuhn said the case is in the process of being set for pre-trial.

"That case was assigned to Judge Harcha, and will be scheduled for a pre-trial some time in the next two to three weeks," Kuhn said.

The charge is the result of a report that came into the Scioto County Sheriff's Office on Oct. 28, 2007, a female patient at Edgewood Riverview Nursing Home had been sexually assaulted by a member of the nursing staff.

Scioto County Sheriff Marty V. Donini said deputies responded to the hospital where the patient had been taken, made a report and sent that report to Scioto County Sheriff's detectives.

Donini said detectives forwarded what evidence they collected to Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation for testing, and the results came back with a match, resulting in the arrest in February.

Jenkins has been free since having his bond set at $100,000 in Portsmouth Municipal Court in February. At that time, Jenkins signed his own recognizance bond for $50,000 and posted a $50,000 cash or surety bond.

FRANK LEWIS can be reached at (740) 353-3101, ext. 232.