Is the Duke Rape case actually a case or a scandal. Duke is about 20 min from my home and the case is ALL we talk about in school, work, and everywhere else. The case has definitely caused unrest within Durham and the surrounding communties. Yet the more I discuss the case the more uncertain I get about the allegations and the case as a whole. With the publicity surrounding this case, I'm sure there are very few people in the country who don't know what I'm talking about.
Prior to the rape allegations, Duke was well-known for its prestigious background and successful students. Today Duke is a school inundated with press, consumed with racial tension, and surrouned by social unrest. When I first heard the case I felt great remorse and pity towards the exotic dancer, as did many others in the community. However, as the case continued more and more people became skeptical of the allegations. The two players indicted were supposedly not even at the party when the crime was committed. However, the victim picked her attackers from photos of the lacrosse team. Also, the second exotic dancer admits lying about some of the events of the night. Including, lying on the 911 phone call about who she was and how the hurt woman ended up in her car. However, when examined by a medical examiner the victim had all the signs of being raped. This case is so confusing and controversial, its hard to seperate facts from lies. I can't wait until the case is over and I hope that, whatever the outcome, justice is served. What is your input on the case? I'm curious to know what people who don't live in this community think about the case and its possible outcome.
well, that's nice. Whether the "signs of being rape" is a check in a box or full mind blowing evidence, "signs of being raped" is just that. I agree that if the check in the box thing is true then that's crazy evidence. However, i just simply stated the facts that have been reported repeatedly on the news.
He was writing a parody -- “something that imitates the characteristic style of an author or a work for comic effect or ridicule.” He was upset that they had paid $800 for a dance that lasted 3 minutes, and he expressed his dissatisfaction in an outlandish parody in a private e-mail. He was using a partial quote from "American Psycho", a movie on the curriculum of 3 courses at Duke, including the Focus course for freshmen.
He is “guilty” of attending a private university where he could be kicked out without a hearing. In any public university he would have legal rights to due process. Writing a parody is not a misdemeanor and is not grounds for kicking anyone out of a public university -- free speech and all that sort of stuff.
I agree with you on the fact that he wrote a parody. The misdemeanor charges are referring to the insulting threats he made which he does admit. THAT is a misdemeanor here in North Carolina. Perhaps not in your state, but here it is. The statute is "Ethnic Intimidation" The elements of the charge is the following:
A person is guilty of this offense
(1) because of race, color, religion, nationality or country of origin
(2) (a) assaults another person, or
(b) damages the property of another, or
(c) defaces property of another, or
(d) threatens to do (a), (b), or (c)
The punishment is a Class 1 Misdemeanor
Now I'm no lawyer but I think that email about skinning a stripper, in addition to the racial insults made, fit the elements of that charge. However, it is a small offense that carries no "prior offense" point. The statute above is straight from the North Carolina Guidebook to the Elements of Crimes 5th Edition. Check it out. I'm in a Law & Justice class so we work out of the book everyday. There are probably other minor charges that these would fall under such as the second element of Disorderly Conduct, which is "(2) Makes or uses any utterance, gesture, display or abusive language whis is intended and plainly likely to provoke violent retaliaton and thereby cause a breach of the peace." This is listed as a Class 2 Misdemeanor. Anywayz, I am not on either side in this case. I just like for the law to be interpreted correctly. Your input on the blog is greatly appreciated. I like to know what others think.
Just to let you know, eyewitnesses don't always pick out the right suspect(s), and it's not that they're lying. It's got a lot to do with neuroscience and psychology, but I won't get into it. :)
At any rate, it's good to debate things like this and have an opinion, but it's terrible how the world at large thinks they know all the facts and have more of an understanding of the case than the judge and jury. Oi!
~danimo
lol thats funny. its always good to educate yourself. o and a jury is made up of your peers. so they know about as much as your average person does until the actual trial where the attorneys present evidence.
Yes, what you say is true. Threats are misdemeanors. So is incitement of a breach of the peace. I don’t know if you are grouping all the players together in this, or what. But I have not seen any specific allegation that Ryan McFadyen made any insulting threats or racial remarks. He sent a parody in an e-mail -- offensive yes, but still a parody -- and it contained no racial references at all. It was not a bona fide threat and it was not incitement. But maybe I am mistaken about laws in N. C. Maybe you have a source, maybe you could ask your teacher. I’d be interested to know what you find out.
yea i will definitely ask her about it. She's been to law school so she would know. i just know little things from the book.
Well, from what Ive seen by watching hours of CSPAN, she didnt show physical signs of rape, but rather physical signs of "recent sex." The DNA that they extracted from her vaginal cavity was identified to be that of her boyfriend. She said she was 90% sure about the suspect identification (which is often inaccurate anyway), but she said that one them (the captain of the team) had a mustache at the time. The defense has proven that the team captain has never had a mustache (though I suppose you could use a false one. I dont think those are very convincing though). So on the one hand, I have really been led to believe that at the very least, the team captain is innocent. However, I do not see why she would fabricate such an intricate story about something so brutal and let it get as far as it has (with press coverage, etc). But most of the commentators that I have listened to believe that if the defense proves the team captain guy (sorry I cant remember his name right now) never had a mustache, the case is basically over. Furthermore, it is very curious that the prosecuting attorney has refused to sit down and speak with the accused. That is a rare and likely detrimental move for an attorney to make.