Two Torrington High School football players stand accused of sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl. Four others were suspended in a hazing scandal last fall that is still under investigation. One player, the team’s second-highest scorer last fall, was allowed to play even though the team’s coach knew he had been charged with felony robbery and assault.
School officials claim that the sexual assault charges against 18-year-olds Edgar Gonzalez and Joan Toribio, the hazing and other incidents are isolated problems and don’t signal a deeper issue with the culture of Torrington High School, its athletic programs or football team.
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But on social media in recent weeks, dozens of athletes and Torrington High School students, male and female, have taunted the 13-year-old victim, calling her a “whore,” criticizing her for “snitching” and “ruining the lives” of the 18-year-old football players, and bullying students who defend her.
Extremely tough read. A number of tweets are republished behind the link.
So don’t sign the petition demanding CNN apologize. Instead, draw attention to the good coverage.
ESPN’s Michael Smith and Jemele Hill devoted their entire His & Hers podcast this week to the topic. Hill discussed her own childhood assault as a 12-year-old and the fact that her mother was sexually assaulted as well. They talked about the responsibility parents have to educate their sons and daughters, about the pervasiveness of male entitlement in sports cultures and how difficult it is to achieve justice. Smith explains his sympathy for the convicted boys. Hill describes how she would counsel a teen girl to protect herself in a world that won’t respect her right to say no.
The National Sexual Violence Resource Center tried to draw attention to a study suggesting that more than half of teenagers would find it tough to intervene; 40 percent said they wouldn’t know what to do.
And blogger and former Steubenville resident Alexandria Goddard describes her role in uncovering the documentation of the assault on social media.
It’s not wrong to feel sympathy for two boys crying over their ruined lives. Because of the perceived stigma, we don’t name the victim or see her image. I’m not suggesting that we change that, until victims voluntarily ask us to. But we in the media have to do more to put a face on the victims of childhood rape. We need to find ways to tell their stories, the way David Holthouse did in his moving first-person stories for Westward and This American Life.
“But we in the media have to do more to put a face on the victims of childhood rape.”
The adults need to take responsibility guide these children. I ask every person listening what if this was your daughter, your sister or your friend? We need to stress the importance of helping those in need and to stand up for what is right. We all have that option to choose. This is the start of a new beginning for my daughter. I ask that you all continue to pray for her and all victims and please respect our privacy as we help our family to heal. Thank you.The mother of the Steubenville rape victim, speaking to Anderson Cooper 360. She also added this: “My family and I are hopeful that we can put this whole ordeal behind us. We need and deserve to focus on our daughter’s future. We hope that from this something good can arise. I feel I have an opportunity to bring an awareness to others, possibly change the mentality of a youth or help a parent to have more of an awareness to where their children are and what they are doing.”
Judge Thomas Lipps announced his decision after reviewing evidence presented over four days of testimony in the case against 17-year-old Trent Mays and 16-year-old Ma’lik Richmond, who were tried as juveniles.
Mays and Richmond were tried before Lipps, a visiting judge, without a jury. The trial moved quickly — and through the weekend — to accommodate the judge’s schedule.
They face the possibility of being jailed until they are 21.
The ruling brings an end to a trial that has gained national attention for its lurid text messages, cell phone pictures and videos, and social media posts surrounding the alleged sexual abuse of the girl.
Mays and Richmond (along with their lawyers and families) were extremely emotional in the courtroom in the wake of the decision, with both offering statements apologizing to the victim.
The judge in the Steubenville rape trial is about to announce the verdict. Watch live video over here.
EDIT: The judge ruled that Trent Mays and Ma’lik Richmond have been found guilty.
Second EDIT: Here’s a story on the matter.
The girl testified Saturday that after leaving a party around midnight on Aug. 11 with the two football players, she woke up the next morning in the basement living room of another house. She was naked, she recalled, with no idea how she got there or where she was, and Mr. Mays, Mr. Richmond and another boy were surrounding her. The girl said that the boys put her clothes on a table, but she could not find her phone, her underwear, her earrings or her shoes.
“I was embarrassed and scared, and I did not know what to think because I could not remember anything,” she testified. She said that over the next two days she pieced together what had happened with the help of friends who showed her a video posted on YouTube and a picture that had circulated of her in the basement lying naked.
Earlier on Saturday, two former friends of the girl testified for the defense that she had a reputation as a liar. An expert defense witness also testified that the girl was not likely to have consumed enough alcohol to pass out that night but that she did drink enough to have a memory lapse, implying she could have consented to having sex but did not remember doing so.
The case, which involves texting and social media elements, has captured national attention in recent months, and the town itself has become torn as a result of the case, which involves two rising stars in the Steubenville High School football program.
backyardgoldmine says: I don’t understand why American news organizations are more concerned about the gang rapes that happen in India than the ones that happen here. Like the only articles Shortform Blog have about Stubenville are two articles about Rick Santorum giving a speech there.
» SFB says: We posted an article about Steubenville just a couple of days ago. As far as the case in India, it’s very significant issue culturally in that country and prior cases have led to mass protests. We try to cover issues happening in the U.S. as well as internationally. Fact of the matter: Both cases are worth our time and important to cover. — Ernie @ SFB
There’s an abundance of evidence here that she was making decisions, cognitive choices…She didn’t affirmatively say no.Attorney Walter Madison • Defending Steubenville High football players Trent Mays and Ma’lik Richmond against charges of rape during a pre-trial hearing. The two high school students stand accusing of repeatedly raping an unidentified 16-year-old female student during a party last year, and are scheduled to begin trial Wednesday to face federal sexual assault charges. Madison argues that the charges were only leveled after the alleged victim’s parents found out what happened, saying the young girl was simply too embarassed to admit there was consent. source
It’s a disgusting video … it’s stupidity. But you can’t arrest somebody for being stupid.Jefferson County Sheriff Fred Abdalla • Explaining why no new charges will follow the recently leaked video of former Steubenville High School football player Michael Nodianos making jokes about the alleged rape of an unidentified 16-year-old student. Nodianos’ former teammates Trent Mays and Ma’lik Richmond are currently the only two people facing charges for the alleged sexual assault, though neither is being tried as an adult. Sheriff Abdalla’s announcement was intensely booed by those gathered for “Occupy Steubenville” on Saturday, and we doubt the decision will do much to alleviate tensions in a town increasingly divided by this controversy. source
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