MANCHESTER, NH – A woman accused of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old Easterseals client was found not guilty of all charges but is unable to find a job and remains traumatized because of the process, according to her attorney.
Defense attorney Olivier Sakellarios said Lisa Tanguay, 46, was found not guilty of all charges after a two-day bench trial last November before Hillsborough County Superior Court Northern District Judge Diana Nicolosi.
She was arrested in August 2021 and charged with two counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault and one count each of felonious sexual assault and sexual assault. The state dropped two other charges, prostitution and endangering the welfare of a child, prior to trial.
“The complaining witness testified,” Sakellarios said. “The judge indicated he was not credible.”
He said the allegations were constantly changing and not believable. The “truth came out,” he said. But, he asked, how does Tanguay ever get a job again when if you google her name, her mugshot and the story of her arrest comes up? People don’t care,” he said.
He said Tanguay was at Easterseals NH for 16 years. “She spent her whole life working with the needy and this was a horrible, horrible experience for her,” he said.
She was under stress for more than two years until the judge exonerated her, he said.
And while she was found not guilty, Sakellarios said “they can’t put you back the way you were before. It just doesn’t work that way.”
