Two jurors dismissed in trial of former officer

Two jurors were dismissed late in the trial of former Memphis police Officer Darrell Malone on Wednesday.

One juror had to leave because she knew details about Malone's prior harassment case and talked about the case with another juror, who also was dismissed.

Malone, who is on trial this week charged with rape, was previously charged and acquitted of harassing a Collierville man.

At the trial involving the harassment allegation, Michael Montgomery testified that he reported Malone and other motorcyclists driving recklessly Oct. 24, 2012, near Germantown Parkway and Interstate 40. Montgomery said he pulled up to the group and warned them he would report them, and Malone showed that he had a gun at his waist. The man said that Malone later called him and said "See, I told you I'm the police. If I see you in Memphis, I'm gonna (expletive) you up."

There are 12 jurors left on the jury in Malone's trial, which was scheduled to continue Thursday morning with closing arguments.

Malone, 30, is charged with raping a woman he met at a mall in 2013.

While he decided not to testify Wednesday, a statement he made to police about what he said happened was read to the jury by Memphis police Lt. Byron Braxton and Assistant District Attorney Bryce Phillips.

According to the statement, Malone said he remembered meeting a woman in April 2013 at Wolfchase Mall. He said no relationship developed after meeting her, but that they saw each other one time at Starbucks and they went to Shelby Farms. She left her laptop in his car and she came to get it.

"She came up to my place for like five minutes," he said, before denying questions about if he raped her.

"Did you and (the victim) have any type of intimate contact when she was at your apartment?" he was further asked in the statement. "No," he said. The victim testified earlier this week that Malone raped her and that she repeatedly told him to stop.