Editor’s note: This story contains details about an alleged sexual assault.
A Ridgway man accused of raping a 28-year-old woman in her home in December claimed he thought she was his wife, who was in the room at the time of the alleged assault.
Details of the arrest affidavit for Brian Scranton, 48, tell a story of a woman confused and scared when she awoke to find the man she thought of as an “uncle” assaulting her. The Plaindealer does not name victims in sexual assault cases unless there are unavoidable circumstances or the victim explicitly wishes to be named.
The woman’s account, documented in the affidavit by Colorado Bureau of Investigation agents, said Scranton and his wife had been partying at Steps Tavern in Ridgway on Noel Night, Dec. 1.
The Scrantons became “very intoxicated,” according to the report, and the victim in the case allowed them to spend the night in her studio apartment.
The couple went to bed on a pullout couch and the woman fell asleep in her own bed after taking a muscle relaxer. She awoke to Scranton on top of her, sexually assaulting her, she told investigators. She estimated this happened for a few minutes, while she elbowed him and tried to get him off of her.
At that time, “Brian pulled up his pants and laid back down” with his wife on the pullout bed, which was in the same room.
The next morning, they left. Scranton texted to apologize for vomiting in her bathroom and they returned to the apartment to get a purse they left behind.
The victim said they didn’t communicate about what happened until later, after she reported the incident to the Ridgway Marshal’s Office on Dec. 18, and the case was referred to the CBI. Scranton was previously acquitted in a sex assault case by a jury trial in 2018, and the marshal’s office cited that prior case and the amount of previous community involvement in referring this new case to the CBI.
Investigators called Scranton on Jan. 25 and asked him to meet them for an interview, but he was out of state. After the phone call, Scranton started texting the victim, according to the affidavit.
In those text messages, investigators said Scranton admitted to the assault.
“I should have called you immediately. That whole night is a blur and I actually thought (hoped) it was just a bad dream. Can we talk please? I’m terrified,” he wrote.
The text conversation involves Scranton saying he woke up to vomit and, “I think I got into bed thinking I was home,” he wrote, apologizing and saying the last thing he ever wanted to do was hurt her, and, “This is going to ruin everything…” “If the last thing you want to do is hurt me, then why did I wake up to you having sex with me?” she responded.
Scranton replied that he was “so (messed) up” and he thinks that he thought she was his wife.
He was arrested on a warrant on Jan. 29, four days after the texts, on suspicion of felony sexual assault.
His next court appearance is today (Thursday) for a formal filing of charges.
If you or anyone else needs assistance with sexual assault resources, please call either the National Domestic Violence Center 24/7 hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or the National Sexual Assault 24/7 hotline at 1-800656-4673.
