And wasn't prosecuted (probably) because the rapist's family was politically connected. There's no excuse for at least statutory under the facts as presented. Also. dude should probably avoid saying rape-y things on social media if he's still within the statute of limitations.
Originally Posted by :
Here's a depressing story that will bring back memories of the Steubenville rape case. It begins with a 14-year-old drunk girl getting dumped on her porch by the high school football player who had just allegedly raped her, and it ends with her family being driven out of town by an unsupportive community.
A horrifying story out of Missouri: A mother was run out of a small town after her daughter blacked out at a party filled with older high school athletes and was left, with clear marks of rape, on the front lawn of her home in freezing weather.
The Kansas City Star details how the small town of Maryville turned against a newly-arrived family after 14-year-old Daisy Coleman reported that an older athlete had sex with her while another older male videotaped, after she was given an alcoholic drink at a party that left her barely able to stand. Her friend, a 13-year-old, was also made to have non-consensual sex.
After a thorough investigation by the local police however, clearly implicating 17-year-old Matthew Barnett in the sexual assault, charges were inexplicably dropped by the prosecuting attorney. Barnett, coincidentally, is the grandson of a prominent former Missouri state representative.
Star reporter Dugan Arnett writes,
Sexual assault cases can be difficult to build because of factors such as a lack of physical evidence or inconsistent statements by witnesses. But by the time his department had concluded its investigation, Sheriff Darren White felt confident the office had put together a case that would “absolutely” result in prosecutions.
“Within four hours, we had obtained a search warrant for the house and executed that,” White told The Star. “We had all of the suspects in custody and had audio/video confessions.
“I would defy the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department to do what we did and get it wrapped up as nicely as we did in that amount of time.”
But no prosecutions ever came. The charges were dropped by the prosecuting attorney who didn't believe the evidence was strong enough. He dismissed any idea that political influence had anything to do with his decision.
In the meantime, the town had already begun to turn on the Coleman family. Threatening phone calls and online threats were directed at the family. Melinda Coleman had moved to the town with her four children after her husband, a physician, had died in a car accident. She was easily targeted by the community for being an outsider.
The parent of one of the teens at the Barnett house that night was the only one to comment briefly to The Star: “Our boys deserve an apology, and they haven’t gotten it yet.”
In a later interview, Rice [the prosecuting attorney] called it a case of “incorrigible teenagers” drinking alcohol and having sex. “They were doing what they wanted to do, and there weren’t any consequences. And it’s reprehensible. But is it criminal? No.”
Robert Sundell, who represented Barnett, echoed that sentiment: “Just because we don’t like the way teenagers act doesn’t necessarily make it a crime.”
After the charges were dropped, things just got worse for Melinda and Daisy Coleman. Daisy has struggled with depression and attempted suicide. Melinda had to move away from Maryville and back to the town she had lived in with her now-deceased husband. In April, the house in Maryville she still owned burned down under mysterious circumstances.
And Matthew Barnett, the young man accused by Coleman of raping her? He's attending the University of Central Missouri and apparently having a great time:
In a recent retweet, he expressed his views on women — and their desire for his sexual attentions — this way:
“If her name begins with A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z, she wants the D."
Originally Posted by jspchief:
Exactly. Pretty sad that a bunch of hackers have better morals than the people we rely on for justice and protection.
It's not just them, though. The people of Maryville could have demanded justice and stood up for this girl and their family. For the most part, apparently, they did not. [Reply]
Originally Posted by RaiderH8r:
Yep. Their compliance and tolerance enable these ****bags to get away with this shit. Clean up your backyard or have someone else do it for you. Simple choice.
**** that town anyway. It's a backwoods burg. A boil on a warthog's ass. Turn it into a nuclear waste dump for all I care. Any community that allows a miscarriage of justice of this nature deserves to burn. Small town America, where everybody knows everybody else. They know the shit that is going on and not doing a ****ing thing about it. Why? Because FOOTBALL! ****'em.
This is the sort of shit you,expect to hear coming from a town in the mountains of Afghanistan. Think on that shit for a second. This is some third world ****ing bullshit here. Burn the ****ing town to cinders.
Originally Posted by Cave Johnson:
Rialto, CA, I think. What radio program?
Hey Cave,
Sent you a PM but thought I'd save you time and tracked it down.
The Podcast is from The Best of the Left 10/18/13 at the 19:40 mark.
Also talks about the big blowup in Cleveland about a speeder ended up being pursued by 74 out of the 167 on duty at the time. They alleged he had a gun - but he didn't have any weapons. The fleeing driver and his female passenger were shot 137 times for trying to evade police. The only crime was refusal to stop, and the chase went on about a little longer than 20 minutes.
Neither the man or the woman in the car could be identified by facial confirmation because they were shot so much that the damage to their bodies and head were so extensive that their skulls were mush.
64 officers reprimanded administratively, but no one charged with any criminal activity- but I don't know the specific details to assert if it's appropriate or what parties that would apply.
On a positive note there's a short story about a veteran officer that has worked traffic and patrol, in the LA county, for quite a number of years, over 20+ years, and has never had ONE complaint. At about the 33:00 minute mark. Seems like an awesome guy!
Originally Posted by RaiderH8r:
Start by running the prosecutor and Sheriff the fuck out of town in their next election. Or begin the petition process to have them dismissed for cause. I'd give you more but the county website is down so I don't know what rules and regs they have in place for holding officials accountable. I assure you though, they exist. The fact that nobody in that pisswood burg has done shit speaks volumes. They have done literally nothing except go out of their way to run these people out of town to protect a POS that, by all admitted accounts, left her to fucking freeze. Fuck him. Fuck them. Burn the town to cinders and turn it into a parking lot.
We tried that with Lawrence. The fuckers just rebuild. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Great Expectations:
Has anything happened on this yet?
People have found tons of holes in the Coleman family's story. Or should I say stories, as they altered fine details of their story to different media accounts over the months when this story wasn't getting much play (before the KC Star feature).
Seems like the prosecutor was right when he said that he couldn't bring this to court and win. Reasonable doubt all over the place (though I have very little doubt that Daisy was raped). [Reply]
The teenager whose alleged sexual assault in Maryville, Mo., received national attention has been hospitalized following a suicide attempt Sunday night.
Daisy Coleman was initially treated at an area hospital and transferred to a Kansas City psychiatric facility, according to Robin Bourland, a family friend and mother of Paige Parkhurst, who also is tied to the case.
She said she couldn’t speak to what specifically led Daisy to attempt suicide. As of Tuesday, she said Daisy was in stable condition.
Ms. Bourland said the incident has been difficult for the Coleman family.
“It’s heartbreaking for their family,” she said. “They’re doing the best they can ... we’re all just doing the best we know how to do.”
Daisy’s story went viral in October when she and her mother, Melinda, spoke publicly about their case.
The Colemans say that in January 2012, Daisy, then 14, was sexually assaulted by a 17-year-old while intoxicated.
Nodaway County Prosecuting Attorney Robert Rice initially filed charges against the 17-year-old and another teen, also 17, who allegedly videotaped the assault, but later dropped the charges.
Ms. Coleman has said that bullying from others in Maryville led them to leave town, moving to Albany, Mo.
Ms. Bourland, who also lives in Albany, said the town is still supportive of the teens, but there have been instances of bullying there, too.
“It’s starting to get bad in Albany,” she said. “It wasn’t initially, and there’s still a lot of supportive people in Albany. There are a handful of people who want their own 15 minutes of fame who want to weigh in. Unfortunately, those people have a bigger voice than the supporters.” [Reply]
These stories are fascinating to me in that intelligent people can read a story and fifteen minutes later think they know more about what happened than the entire community, police department, legal system, etc. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Deberg_1990:
Sad.....but the KCStar story briefly mentions it stems from a party she was at over the weekend and more harassment online.
She needs to stop partying and stay off social media. Posted via Mobile Device
Have you spent any time in the area she's from? Drinking and social media is all there is to do in that area. If they want to put it behind them they probably need to pack the fuck up and relocate to new state. [Reply]
Originally Posted by ghak99:
Have you spent any time in the area she's from? Drinking and social media is all there is to do in that area. If they want to put it behind them they probably need to pack the fuck up and relocate to new state.
Sound advice. A fresh start far, far away from all of that drama would probably do that entire family a world of good. [Reply]
