Rape, Duke and Sexual Politics

I am smart enough to know that simply because the Duke Lacrosse players are exonerated, it does not mean they did not sexually abuse that woman, or are 'innocent,' but it does mean that the prosecutor does not believe he has the evidence to even go to trial. That is pretty powerful since the old lawyer's saw goes a prosecutor could indict a ham sandwich for murdering the pig. It does not take much to go to trial. Prosecutors take marginal cases to trial all the time, sometimes to coerce a defendant to plea to a lesser charge because the prosecutor is convinced something illegal occurred, if not what is being charged. This is REASONABLE use of prosecutorial power.

Personally, the Duke defendant's major faux paus was political correctness; how dare they, in this day and age, hire a stripper. This woman was there to take her clothes off and pretend that she desired these boys sexually. 'Modern' college men at 'liberal' arts research institution wanted to pay a woman to get naked and most likely then perform simulated sex acts with the other woman who was present. Oh the sheer rough indecency of it all. That is obviously what these two strippers were paid, at least in part, to do. Who knows that happened, perhaps the woman did not get paid what she wanted to be paid for whatever 'extras' the boys wanted, perhaps she was cornered and placed in fear and wanted to teach these boys lesson, and perhaps she was actually touched against her will. Her will involves the exchange of cash, so that touching is a transaction. Rape is certainly out of the question in the absence of DNA.

Does ANYONE recall the 'outrage' at their 'actions?' Duke, in a fit of politically correct stupidity, SUSPENDS the rest of their season and essentially suspends the team. For what? Nothing it appears now. Perhaps now these liberal and politically correct idiots running this school will offer a deep apology to these now young men, with as much fervor and press hounding as they did when they 'suspended' them, the presumption of innocence notwithstanding.

This case disgusts me, as a man and as lawyer. Nifong SHOULD be disbarred. For two reasons. First, if this woman WAS sexually assaulted, she will never get her criminals tried for their crimes. Second, if the woman was NOT sexually assaulted, Nifong totally abused these men's rights, literally trampled them under his rush to destroy their character and lives over a crime which did not occur, was imperfectly investigated, and where exonerating facts were covered up for MONTHS.

Which brings me to sexual politics. No matter WHAT the facts reveal, i.e., this woman did not have so much as pubic hair of THREE boys who supposedly had sex with her against her will on her person. That is simply impossible. Even if they were ALL completely shaved they would have left sperm, or, using a condom, spermicidal jelly or even latex from the condom. None was found. Yet, she had the sperm of at least one other person and the pubic hair of at least two others on her genitalia when she was raped checked the next day. A woman has the right to do as she pleases with her sexuality, but, someone, somewhere, needed to explain how those other men's dna got on her body. This ALL being said, none of the women who so vehemently protested in the days before and after their arrests will EVER believe that this woman lied.

This woman asserted criminal charges, the heinous crime of rape, falsely. These men were completely innocent of rape and now, apparently, innocent of ANY charge because none are being prosecuted. The new Prosecutor lacks the belief even that something illegal occurred.

Where is the moral, and liberal, outrage against destroying three lives for two years? Where is the outrage against abuse of prosecutorial power? Where is the outrage by these womens, black and liberal groups FOR these men? By contributing to the lynch mob mentality these groups fostered the subornation of justice, and encouraged the ignoring of these boys right to fair trial and even a fair evaluation oft he charges against them. The Duke administration is similarly guilty of ignoring what was the right thing to do, which was NOTHING, no consequences until these boys were proven guilty. Yet, they joined the hysterical mob mentality that these boys MUST have done what they did, after all, they hired a stripper. It is, after all, indeed a short trip from hiring a stripper to rape. Happens every day. to that, I answer: Tawana Brawley.

IF I had any say in the NCAA Lacrosse tournament, I'd save a space for Duke this year. If Duke has any class and any remorse, the Administration should resign. What they did was wrong and against every tenet of a supposedly modern institution of higher education.

But I know what will happen. Nothing. No one will apologize, the liberal, black and womens groups will slink back into their cave until they can express fresh outrage at the next event which did not happen. By failing to stand up for these young men now, they cheapen the charge of rape, and make it harder for every woman who comes thereafter, who is attacked, assaulted, smitten and whose life is destroyed.