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 Cochise:
Well, knowing where the two go to school and where they are from, and their ages within a year or two should help with that.
You would hope that. But I know some of these are kids who are anonymous wannabes and do not do their due diligence. [Reply]
Yeah, they will make a media storm on the small town and hopefully some officials get some charges for dropping his, especially after the work the sheriff did according to reports.. [Reply]
Originally Posted by :
Tuesday, October 22, 2013, at 10:00am we will meet at the Nodaway County Courthouse in Maryville, Missouri with daisies in our hands for a peaceful protest in support of Daisy Coleman.
Originally Posted by warpaint*:
I don't anybody would claim she didn't use poor judgement in terms of putting herself in a bad situation but that's aside to a bunch of kids from well connected families potentially getting away w/ multiple felonies.
Originally Posted by Cochise:
I wonder if this didn't have more to do with their place as football players or just as popular kids than local politics. Who knows.
Maryville is not Stuebenville, culturally. Spoofhounds football isn't this all-encompassing Godlike presence in town. This is small-town politics and a county justice system that everybody complains about. The opinion that the cops and judges in the area are corrupt is pretty prevalent in the area. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Reaper16:
Maryville is not Stuebenville, culturally. Spoofhounds football isn't this all-encompassing Godlike presence in town. This is small-town politics and a county justice system that everybody complains about. The opinion that the cops and judges in the area are corrupt is pretty prevalent in the area.
I've never been to Maryville, but it is pretty damn sad that the actions of few are applied to the entire town, and thus, everyone has to suffer the consequences. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Cephalic Trauma:
I've never been to Maryville, but it is pretty damn sad that the actions of few are applied to the entire town, and thus, everyone has to suffer the consequences.
There's plenty of people in Maryville who have been outraged at this story from the very beginning. The local media in the town have done a shit job with this story, as a lot of Maryville people I talk to didn't even know the charges were dropped.
The town itself has a lot to fix about itself, though. This was a town that nurtured a high school community that let Daisy take the blame for being raped. The town did not stand up strongly enough for her family, who was run out of town by the vocal monsters. Silence = complicity. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Reaper16:
The town itself has a lot to fix about itself, though. This was a town that nurtured a high school community that let Daisy take the blame for being raped. The town did not stand up strongly enough for her family, who was run out of town by the vocal monsters. Silence = complicity.
I agree. I think now is a crucial time for some of them to speak out and show they aren't completely apathetic to this girl's situation. Because right now, they are being portrayed as Steubenville 2.0 (and from your post, I get the sense that's not the case). [Reply]