BLOOMINGTON - Prosecutors in the Jeff Pelo rape trial said Thursday they intend to call a urologist to testify about circumcision to address testimony from Pelo's wife that he was not circumcised - a detail that contradicts what one sexual assault victim recalled about her attacker. | Audio analysis: Week 4

Rickielee Pelo spent 90 minutes on the witness stand at her husband's trial on charges that he sexually assaulted four women between 2002 and 2005 and stalked a fifth woman between 2005 and June 10, 2006, when he was stopped by police outside her home on Andy Court.

In response to a question from defense attorney Michael Rosenblat, the wife of the former Bloomington police sergeant said her husband has not been circumcised.

Chief Felony Prosecutor Mark Messman told Judge Robert Freitag after the testimony that the state intends to have a urologist testify about the issues of circumcision. Rosenblat objected, saying Pelo has been in jail since 2006 and police have taken numerous samples of his client's voice, fingerprints and DNA.

"They could have asked the court in 2006 to have him examined," said Rosenblat.

The prosecution did not request a urological examination of Pelo.

Freitag did not rule on the request for a new witness. The judge said prosecutors must submit information on the proposed testimony to the defense before a ruling is made.

A woman sexually assaulted in late January 2005 testified that her attacker was circumcised.

Rickielee Pelo said she had trouble remembering specific events she was asked about by Messman, including what time her husband went to bed the night he was stopped after midnight outside the woman's home on Bloomington's east side. He was not arrested until after he was questioned the following day.

"All I can remember is going to bed reading a book, waking up and he was in bed beside me," said Pelo's wife.

When asked if she knew her husband had left the house during the night she said, "I know that he did now."

Outside the courtroom, Pelo's wife said she was "very nervous" during her time in the witness chair.

She told Messman she answered questions from the defense in greater detail because "you make me nervous."

Evidence questions

Pelo's wife was asked about a trip she took to London with two family members in 2003. Souvenir shirts Rickielee Pelo brought home from her trip were an issue during her questioning.

A shirt with the word "England" on the front was described by a woman who reported being raped in January 2005.

Messman showed Pelo a blue shirt with "London" printed on the front. The shirt was collected by police during a search of the Pelos' former home near Downs.

She also was asked to identify photos that depicted the Pelos' daughter, Shayla, wearing a shirt with an "England" logo.

Jeff Pelo's explanation for his being outside a woman's home at midnight - he was looking for a home for his mother-in-law - was an area of inquiry for the former officer's wife. The couple had been going to open houses and looking on the Internet for houses for the family and her mother, she said.

Several prosecution witnesses have testified about a cat hair found on a ski mask police picked up in the Pelos' garage.

Pelo's wife told Rosenblat that several other people - including one person who owned a cat-stayed with the family in the past. She also said the door to the garage does not work and it's common to find stray cats in the building.

Pornography found on several computers police took from the Pelos' home may have been accessed by several family members, said Pelo's wife. She said she and another relative viewed pornography.

The jury was shown several clips from pornographic Web sites depicting violent rapes. Mrs. Pelo said she was aware her husband watched pornography.

"I walked in and saw him viewing it," she said.

Family man

Mrs. Pelo described her husband as "a very, very big family man" who helped with household duties while his wife attended college classes and worked.

She told the jury she met Jeff Pelo in 1987 when he was in the Navy. He joined the police force two years later.

The former sergeant's wife testified that she thought her husband had been injured when she returned home from a movie on June 10, 2006, to find police officers at her home.

"When I saw the assistant chief my heart just about died. I was scared to death something had happened to Jeff," she said.

The ex-cop was questioned by police that day about what they said was an attempted break-in on Andy Court. Police also launched an investigation into a possible link between Pelo and a series of unsolved rape cases.

Mrs. Pelo broke down on the witness stand when she was asked to look at a family photo that included a sister who has died.

Jeff Pelo watched her testimony without expression and continued his habit of taking notes.

A special computer device was set up in the courtroom to assist Pelo's wife, who has a hearing loss.

Messman told the judge the state's list of final witnesses when the trial resumes Monday includes two Bloomington detectives, a police officer and scientists from the FBI. The defense could begin its case next week.