There are few people with less sympathy for frat boys than me. But that said, no one deserves to be prosecuted for rape if the evidence doesn't support the charge. In this case it is clear now that the prosecutor committed professional malpractice, probably for political reasons. That is despicable. I'm also very disappointed with some on the left that publically rushed to judgment on this case, but who have not publically admitted their mistake. However, another major lesson from this case is that if those kids had not had rich parents who could raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for their defense, they would probably have ended up in prison. Think how many times poor defendants who were innocent have been sent to prison in similar circumstances. Money should not play a such a deciding role in whether justice is done.
Nifong was just trying to prevent riots in the streets, perhaps? Nah, he had to have his personal moment of glory in a black woman vs. 3 white boys case.
Imagine a 18 year old opening and downing a tall boy at a high school cafeteria while watching TV with their family at a public beach while walking around a university campus These actions would have no consequences since NO ONE really cares, right? Your reaction, I suspect, may be that if said person is stupid enough to do any of the above then they deserved what they get. Your argument wrt a "quality passable fake ID" is humorous. Are there any consequences for using a fake ID and getting caught? Would bars or liquor stores have no consequences (hint: like losing their license) to selling liquor to someone who was underaged with or without a "quality passable fake ID"? BTW, if you were caught underage and drinking, how do you think the line "all my friends have fake IDs and drink all of the time ... everyone is doing it" would go over with the judge? You are changing the subject here but ... Prohibition does not work.
Not good public policy. Raising the drinking age to 21 reduces drunk driving fatalities. Now, a zero tolerance drunk driving policy (see Sweden) plus lowering the drinking age to 18 might work.
everything in the list above (except the family one) is related to your Police point...in that the only reasons they would matter is if the kid is caught by police/authorities. I already agreed with you that police do care, because it's technically against the law. that's why I stated I was talking about the 'general common population' as the ones who don't care in other words, if we had a poll here on this forum that asked something like: "did you ever drink underage?" or "do you think underage drinking is a big deal?"...which side do you think would get the majority of the votes? you know the answer to that as far as I know (this is an assumption), if I were the bouncer/cashier at some bar/liquor store and I see an ID which I truly believe is a 100% real one, I can't be held liable for that if it turns out to be a fake one? as long as you check everyone. I mean bars/liquor stores can't bring out the FBI/cops to do some technological expert check on every single person, right? someone else that knows this issue for sure will have to answer lol, no...I told you I already agreed with you that I know it's technically against the law. so for any kid who gets caught, you just take your MIP and move on. or lots of kids just get probation even exactly...but *WHY* does it not work, in your opinion?
the ultimate irony. he tried to make a name for himself by going after some kids of privaledge, and he probably got disbarred for going after some kids of privaledge.
Irony? It's called stupidity. If you were him and had the facts in front of you knowing they were innocent, would you pursue the case? As a parent I can tell you that if my child was at an ATM machine when she supposedly was involved in a crime many miles away, I'd spend every dime defending her rights. He was hiding evidence. It's completely mind boggling worthy of a bad Lifetime movie. The parents should sue him for every dime he has. And the fact the alleged victim escapes with no liability is a travesty of justice. She should be sent to jail. The only reason she escapes free and clear is because she's black. After all, she's been traumatized enough making false accusations. Calling Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson.
I think the better point would be that he should have known when to stop pursuing the case. He should have brought the Dukies in for questioning and maybe DNA testing. When the Dukies story rang more true than the stripper's, the case should have been dropped. By this time though, this story would have made the rounds in the media. And the Dukies' "good name" would be in trouble. As a news story there was alot to like rich privileged white kids rowdy frat boys who aim to just stay this side of the law a party with underaged drinking black strippers racist remarks rape allegations A combination of youth, drink and/or privilege muddled the Dukies thinking. They should have paid and sent the strippers home, when they arrived without the race baiting.
This will be my last response to you. I understand your point fully. I drank while underaged, though through experience and hindsight I now see that I took a larger risk than I realized at the time. To your question At the time, no. Now, yes. Incorrect. I am sorry if I was too subtle for you. Colleges are very concerned about civil litigation that spring from underaged drinking. Colleges that actively turn a blind eye to underaged drinking run the risk that they will get sued if one of their underaged student dies from binge drinking or is involved in a car accident while drunk. Some college campuses are now dry because of this. This is dangerous thinking, but I leave it you.
My 2 cents, blast me if you want: My sister has some contacts in that area and a lot of people still believe something happened. I'm not saying those 3 guys were guilty of rape but something likely happened to that woman. Nifong was waaaay out of line and as a prosecutor you MUST drop a case when the evidence can't support an indictment. The fact he lied and deceived everyone about the evidence is unbelieveable. That still doesn't mean some sort of wrongdoing didn't occur. Note Nifong's parting words: "Something happened to make everybody leave that scene very quickly."
