The New Hampshire Supreme Court yesterday dismissed rape and sexual assault convictions against a former Strafford County jail chaplain accused of sexually assaulting a female inmate, saying the evidence failed to demonstrate that the acts occurred during a therapeutic relationship.

The state had charged Ralph Flodin, 72, under a statute that said the 2006 sexual contact between the two happened under a relationship in which he was providing the inmate therapy or medical treatment. The court, in a unanimous opinion, said that however inappropriate they might have been, the acts Flodin was accused of did not happen within the context of a "therapy" relationship.

Thomas Bocian, assistant attorney general, said his office was reviewing the opinion before deciding on whether to ask the court to reconsider it.

Flodin was sentenced last year to two to 10 years in prison. According to the court opinion, Flodin pursued prison ministry by volunteering at the jail and at the state prison. He hosted group and individual meetings with inmates, including Bible study groups, marriage seminars and programs on forgiveness and anger management. He never received any formal religious education and was never ordained.

Flodin was hired in July 2006 as a part-time spiritual services coordinator at the jail. He regularly met with inmates for one-on-one counseling sessions, including the alleged victim, who had been in a car accident that caused the death of a friend and was feeling suicidal.

He eventually learned she was diagnosed as bipolar. Authorities learned the relationship became sexual in 2007 and Flodin admitted that what he did was wrong.

Flodin's lawyers, before trial and on appeal, argued that he did not provide "therapy" within the meaning of the sexual assault statute and that the definition of what constitutes therapy in the law is vague.

The court concluded that Flodin's counseling "does not give rise to a rational conclusion that the defendant engaged in a planned action or a systematic cause or measure, procedure, technique or any other particular approach" to address the inmate's problems.