SYCAMORE – A former Northern Illinois University police officer officially pleaded not guilty today to allegations he raped a student off-duty and off-campus.

But Andrew Rifkin, 25, of Northbrook, also asked the judge this morning to take notice of previous court rulings, including one that found NIU police intentionally withheld evidence favorable to him. He is accused of forcing a sex act on a woman with whom he had an on-going relationship in October 2011, court records show.

Those two witness statements, which ended up in Rifkin's personnel file instead of prosecutors' hands, played a large role in former State's Attorney Clay Campbell dropping the rape charge in November. They also were the main reason NIU officials cited in firing longtime NIU Police Chief Donald Grady.