McGee, Dickson Acquitted on Sexual Assault Charges

Charles McGee and Aubre Lamont Dickson were acquitted Friday afternoon on charges they sexually assaulted a woman in a southeast Portland home.

“I find I cannot conclude to a moral certainty that the defendants are guilty of the crimes they are charged with," Judge David Rees told the courtroom. McGee and Dickson had waived their right to a jury trial. The seven-day bench trial concluded March 21.

McGee, the founder and former CEO of the Black Parent Initiative, and Dickson, a vice president of Key Bank, were accused of attempting to rape Erica Naito-Campbell in May 2012 in a Willamette Week cover story in February 2018 and were indicted on assault charges later that year. McGee, then a candidate for Multnomah County Commission, suspended his campaign and both men lost their jobs.

Naito-Campbell did not report the assault to police or visit a doctor, and absent physical evidence or witnesses the state’s case depended on Naito-Campbell’s credibility, which was attacked during the trial. The prosecution called Naito-Campbell’s therapist, family members and friends as witnesses to corroborate her account. The defense called no witnesses.

If convicted on charges that included first-degree unlawful sexual penetration, McGee and Dickson would have faced at least eight and one-third years in prison.