This verse explains why the woman is presumed innocent. A woman promised in marriage would not willingly have sex with another man.

Because he came upon her in the open country: other ways to express this are “The man raped the engaged girl in the countryside,” or even “the woman was alone out in the countryside when the man found her and raped her.”

Though the … woman cried for help: see verse 24.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .