The conviction and sentence for an Egan man who continually beat a former girlfriend and then raped her multiple times will stand.

Byron J. LeJeune was sentenced to 30 years in prison in the 2021 case after being unanimously convicted on Sept. 29, 2023.

During the trial, the victim said she and LeJeune had been broken up for about six months — though she said they continued to have sex intermittently — at the time of the attack. She said on Dec. 29, 2001, LeJeune messaged her requesting help finding a bed in rehab and claiming to want “help changing his life.”

She said they agreed to meet at a Moss Bluff casino, where they played video poker together before driving in his car to Holly Beach to visit a friend. She said both of them had been drinking.

She said while they were in Holly Beach, her mother — when unable to reach her daughter by phone — called LeJeune’s cell. During a heated discussion, the mother told LeJeune to stay away from her daughter.

The victim testified that LeJeune was initially unfazed by the call but began striking her shortly after they left the friend’s home. She said LeJeune told her that if she wouldn’t complain to her mother about “all the stuff that (LeJeune) does, then she wouldn’t hate him.” She said LeJeune struck her five times before pulling over into an adjacent parking lot. Photos of the victim’s injuries were shown to jurors.

The victim then testified that after parking, LeJeune demanded she perform oral sex on him. While she protested that she had to use the bathroom first, she said he “didn’t care,” and she ended up urinating on herself. Although she said she did not explicitly tell LeJeune she did not want to have sex, she testified she didn’t feel “no” was an option because he had already hit her.

When they got back on the road, the victim said they stopped at a local drive-thru restaurant where LeJeune received a text from a woman asking for money. The victim said she commented on the text and LeJeune struck her several more times, confiscated her phone, and ripped off and broke her Apple watch. She also testified that LeJeune began strangling her.

She said he ultimately drove her to Joe Breaux Road, a sparsely populated area near a canal, and directed her to get out of the car, stand in front of it and not move. She said he proceeded to rev up the car, peel out, and drive toward her numerous times, each time prompting her to jump or fall out of the way. Each time she did so, she said LeJeune got out of the car, hit her a few more times, and told her once again not to move. When she tried to block the hits, she said LeJeune — who was wearing cowboy boots — would kick whichever body part she used to block him and eventually broke her ribs.

Photos of the canal on Joe Breaux Road that were given to jurors show tire marks leading up to a pair of shoes.

The victim said LeJeune then drove her to Pumpkin Center Road where they had sex again and she cried “the whole time because I was hurting.” She said he repeatedly refused her requests for medical treatment.

He then drove her back to the casino, parked the car there and told her they would be spending the rest of the night there. The next day, he drove her to an abandoned house in Topsy, where they had sex again.

Later in the day, she said she was able to take LeJeune’s keys from him and drive herself to a local hospital. She told the medical personnel she was physically assaulted by a known person during a car ride and that she had pain to her right jaw and back area. Bruising to the face, eyes, and arms were noted in her chart. Although she denied any loss of consciousness and was alert and oriented at the time of examination, medical personnel additionally suspected that she had a possible concussion as a result of blunt force head trauma.

During the prosecution’s questioning, the victim was asked her whether she believed she could have stopped or resisted LeJeune’s sexual advances. She testified she believed any attempts by her to object or resist would have been futile as it “would have just caused me to get hit more,” and LeJeune would have proceeded to have sex with her regardless.

The prosecution ultimately called 10 witnesses to testify — including three of LeJeune’s former sexual partners who all said he abused them during their relationships.

The defense did not call any witnesses.

In his appeal, LeJeune claims that while he doesn’t dispute having sex with the victim, “she never indicated that she was unwilling to have sex or that this sex was nonconsensual.” He also claimed she failed to report her abuse as rape until after it was suggested to her by the police. He also argued that his 30-year sentence for second-degree rape, without the possibility of probation, parole, or suspension of sentence, is unconstitutionally excessive.

The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal denied LeJeune’s claim, stating “it is simply not reasonable for LeJeune to assume that the person he is beating and holding against her will is complying with his demands for sex out of genuine consent, particularly when the victim is crying during the act.”

The panel also stated LeJeune’s sentence is justified due to the prolonged physical and psychological pain that he inflicted on the victim.