Reply #282: Cross posted

[FredScuttle]

I applaud Steve Gilliard's take on the case. First, he highlights some key passages from the AP article -

"Because the woman said her attackers were white, the team's sole black player was not tested. It was not known whether investigators tested for DNA other than the players'.

...................................

While Nifong's assistant told the AP on Monday the prosecutor would not comment on the findings, Nifong told The News & Observer of Raleigh he believes a sexual assault took place.

"I'm not saying it's over," he told the newspaper. "If that's what they expect, they will be sadly disappointed."

North Carolina Central University, where the alleged victim is a student, said after the results were released that the prosecutor would appear at a campus forum on Tuesday to discuss the case.

"The truth is if you speak to crime lab directors, they will tell you that in only a relatively small number of cases is there any DNA evidence," said Peter Neufeld, co-founder of the Innocence Project.

That last sentence is very important, especially in light of all those crowing that this means the case is over.

Some on this board think, absent of DNA evidence, that it will be impossible to convince twelve jurors that a stripper can be raped. I'd think the District Attorney has a case to make and he's in the process of doing that. He's not an idiot...he knew going into this that he'd have a high threshold to clear to convince a jury that a sex worker could be raped, DNA or no DNA evidence.

I am more ready to believe that a house full of drunken lacrosse players could include a couple sociopaths capable of sexual assault than I am that a woman would go through all of this just to lie....what would be her motive, exactly? And, if she's the grand schemer the defense is making her out to be, why didn't they advise their clients to talk to the police to begin with?

Benefit of the doubt? To a group which includes the guy who yelled to the black victim "Thank your grandpa for my cotton shirt, bitch"? Not a chance.


NEWS BLOG: http://stevegilliard.blogspot.com/2006/04/no-dnashe-has...

AP article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/duke_lacrosse_investigation ;_ylt=AjAwYLVHJ5Z5.Zf0pvtBQ5Ws0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTA2Z2szazkxBHNlYwN0bQ--