A Kalispell man was found guilty of sexual intercourse without consent after a four-day trial concluded Thursday afternoon.

The jury deliberated into the evening before returning the verdict, which was the second time the man was found guilty of the crime. Sentencing has been set for April 7.

Jason Dean Franks, 46, was convicted of raping an 11-year old girl in March 2007 at her father’s home. The now 20-year-old victim testified that Franks held her down, raped her, and then suggested that she put her private parts under running water after the act. She claimed that he then told her not to tell anyone.

As the trial entered a fourth day, the defense called a single witness to the stand to try to establish an alibi for Franks.

Witness LeeAnn Giardina testified that Franks had been to her birthday dinner on the March 2007 date the crime is alleged to have occurred. Giardina provided a check verifying that she had paid for dinner that night at a restaurant. She also testified that she believed her husband had been with Franks earlier in the day, but that she was not with them to verify that actually happened. The husband was available to testify, but the prosecution opted not to bring him to the stand to verify what happened earlier in the day, when the incident was determined to have occurred.

The defense focused on a few minor inconsistencies in the testimony by the friends and family that the girl told about the incident and a lack of DNA evidence.

“There’s not a scrap of physical evidence in this case,” defense attorney Samantha Travis told the jury. “There’s no DNA, no blood.”

Prosecutor Alison Howard pointed out that the victim can remember several specific details about the attack that have not varied throughout the case, which she first reported to police in 2010.

“If she’s a liar, she’s a brilliant liar,” Howard argued.

The case went to trial in 2012 and Franks was convicted, but the Montana Supreme Court overturned the verdict and ordered a new trial in October 2014, after it determined that testimony about another case where Franks was accused but acquitted of molesting boys should not have been admissible.

Franks is already a sex offender and felon. He was convicted of sexual assault in 1992 and failure to register as a sex offender in 2012.

He faces up to 100 years in prison at sentencing.

Reporter Megan Strickland can be reached at 758-4459 or mstrickland@dailyinterlake.com.