It started as a joke. Now a man stands trial for rape.

What started as a joke between friends found its way into a Centre County courtroom on Monday. Kyle Swindell, 23, of Bedford, is facing felony charges of rape, sexual assault and indecent aggravated assault.

The charges stem from a reported incident in April 2016 when the then-18-year-old woman claimed Swindell had raped her during a surprise birthday party in the borough. The alleged assault ended when Swindell’s brother entered the room.

The jury heard testimony in the morning from the woman at the center of the incident, now 20 years old. She testified that she had been friends with Swindell’s brother but had never met Swindell himself before that night.

The joke, between herself and one of her friends, had reportedly involved whether or not she found Swindell attractive, as she had denied attraction to his brother. Swindell and his brother are reportedly twins.

At the night of the party, she testified to having about six shots of cinnamon-flavored whiskey, which had been provided by Swindell. The “joke” had resurfaced during the evening, and she later found herself in the brother’s bedroom with Swindell.

It was at that point he forced himself on her, she testified.

In cross-examination, Swindell’s attorney, Philip Masorti, worked to pull apart the woman’s testimony by pointing out inconsistencies with her story over the course of the investigation. He noted that at times, she had testified to having “approximately six shots” of alcohol versus “exactly six shots,” had described different sequences of the assault during trial testimony versus preliminary hearing testimony, and questioned why she had apologized to the brother for having sex on his bed after the alleged assault.

One of the residents of the apartment during the night in question, Natasha Byer, testified to hearing Swindell tell his brother the next morning that he “blacked out” and didn’t remember the incident. Masorti also pointed out in cross-examination that Byer had reportedly told police that she had no contact nor heard anything from Swindell after the incident.

The jury heard further testimony from other individuals at the party that evening, including one who told police some of the woman’s statements after the alleged rape. She said the woman had been “unsure how she was going to tell her boyfriend, Cody.”

The woman had previously testified that she had no boyfriend at the time. Another testified that she hadn’t taken a joke that the woman and Swindell were going to have sex “seriously.”

Cody Groff took the stand and testified that he and the woman had been involved romantically from 2013-14, but remained friends since then. He also testified that he had been told by Swindell’s brother that he was not in on the joke about the woman having sex with Swindell.

Jurors were shown photographic evidence gathered by Mount Nittany Medical Center staff two days after the reported incident. A Mount Nittany nurse testified to observing and photographing bruises, scratches and abrasions on the woman’s body.

State College police Detective Chris Weaver testified to having spoken with Swindell and informed him he was facing “serious charges.” Weaver testified that Swindell responded, saying, “I guess my actions have consequences.”

Weaver also provided clothing evidence at Masorti’s request, confirming that a bra that had allegedly been forcibly removed was undamaged, and underwear worn the day of the reported assault were clean, which challenges her assertions of the night.

The prosecution rested its argument Monday. The trial is expected to conclude Tuesday.

This story was originally published September 26, 2017 at 12:02 AM with the headline "It started as a joke. Now a man stands trial for rape.."