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Duke University has instituted a new "sexual misconduct" policy that can render a student guilty of non-consensual sex simply because he or she is considered "powerful" on campus. The policy claims that "perceived power differentials may create an unintentional atmosphere of coercion." Duke's new policy transforms students of both sexes into unwitting rapists simply because of the "atmosphere" or because one or more students are "intoxicated," no matter the degree. The policy also establishes unfair rules for judging sexual misconduct accusations. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) is challenging the policy. "Duke's new sexual misconduct policy could have...

Published Wed, Mar 31, 2010 05:51 PM Modified Wed, Mar 31, 2010 05:56 PM Ex-Duke lacrosse coach settles lawsuit DURHAM Duke University and Mike Pressler, the man at the helm of the lacrosse program when a stripper brought false rape accusations against three team members, have settled a lawsuit filed by the former coach. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. "Coach Michael Pressler is an excellent coach," Michael Schoenfeld, vice president for public affairs and government relations, said in a prepared statement. " He did a great job building the Duke men's lacrosse program, while maintaining a 100...

District Attorney Joel Brewer will retire Monday from the position he has held since 1994. Gov. Beverly Perdue is expected to name someone to complete his four-year term early next week. Justin Guillory, a spokesperson for the governor’s office, confirmed for The Courier-Times late Friday that current assistant district attorney Roger Echols, Jr. and Sandra S. Pugh, a Yanceyville attorney, are under consideration for the appointment to complete Brewer’s unexpired term. Echols and Pugh, both Democrats, have filed their intentions to run for the District 9A position, which serves Person and Caswell counties. The two will square off in May...

Police filed several charges against a Durham woman in connection with a fire at 2220 Lincoln St. on Wednesday afternoon. Crystal Gale Mangum, 31, and her boyfriend, Milton Walker, had an altercation, according to a police news release. Mangum set clothing on fire in the bathroom tub, police reported. Three children and the two adults were evacuated from the apartment. Police charged Mangum with five counts of arson, simple assault; identity theft; communicating threats; damage to property; resisting, delay and obstruction; and three counts of child endangerment. Anyone with information should contact Officer H. Thompson at 560-4415 Ext. 29297 or...

"Oh, I just got raped." With those five words, Danmell Ndonye turned the lives of four innocent men into a living nightmare. For several days last September, Stalin Felipe, Kevin Taveras, Jesus Ortiz, and Rondell Bedward were publicly branded as rapists, mauled by jail guards, and threatened with 25 years behind bars. "I'm not even 25 years old. I'm just 19," a relieved Felipe said later, following news that the tryst had been taped on a by-stander's cell phone, which showed the encounter to be entirely (and enthusiastically) consensual. Afterwards, classmates were "calling my daughter the sister of a rapist,"...

Three Duke University freshmen were charged with felonious possession and discharge of a weapon following an early morning incident Sunday on the Duke campus. The students — John Drew, Kyle Griswould and Brandon Putnam, who are all from Georgia — were members of the Duke football team. They have been dismissed from the squad, and the university also has determined they will not be permitted to return to campus pending the resolution of the charges. At about 3 a.m. Sunday, Duke University Police heard gunfire coming from a vehicle near the Jarvis residence hall on Duke’s East Campus. The vehicle...

Obama supports former prosecutor who kept innocent man in prison to advance her political career Barack Obama demonstrated his true level of character, ethnics, and integrity when he announced his decision to campaign for Martha Coakley: Massachusetts' counterpart of Mike Nifong. Nifong, Coakley, Scott Harshbarger and Janet Reno all built or advanced their careers by prosecuting people (Durham lacrosse players, the Amiraults, and Grant Snowden) whom they knew or should have known were innocent, although Nifong was the only one who was actually found guilty of misconduct. Even in Nifong's case, which involved his concealment of exculpatory evidence, the only...

Democrat Martha Coakley helped keep an innocent man in prison to advance her political career We encourage our readers to circulate this material as widely as possible in Massachusetts before the upcoming election.Barack Obama's ongoing ability to shut down Senate filibusters depends on the upcoming election in Massachusetts, in which incumbent Martha Coakley (D) faces Scott Brown (R). Martha Coakley's prominent role in the Amirault scandal, in which innocent people were railroaded to prison on the basis of fabricated evidence and even solicitation of perjury, makes her totally unfit to hold any position of public trust or responsibility. Everybody who...

The "Duke 88" consisted of 88 Duke professors who signed an ad which implicitly assumed that Duke lacrosse players raped a black stripper, an allegation that proved to be entirely fraudulent. The ad praised protesters who had put lacrosse players' photos on "wanted" posters, associated "what happened to this young woman" with "racism and sexism," and suggested that the lacrosse players were getting privileged treatment because of their race. The ad appeared almost four years ago. Stuart Taylor takes a look at what has happened since to some of the 88 thoroughly wrongheaded professors who signed it. First, according to...

Much of academia appears to have a disregard of due process and a bias against white males. You might think that a university whose students were victims of the most notorious fraudulent rape claim in recent history, and whose professors -- 88 of them -- signed an ad implicitly presuming guilt, and whose president came close to doing the same would have learned some lessons. The facts are otherwise. They also suggest that Duke University's ugly abuse in 2006 and 2007 of its now-exonerated lacrosse players -- white males accused by a black stripper and hounded by a mob hewing...

DURHAM (WTVD) -- An overtime scandal at the Durham Police Department will cost a high-ranking officer her job. Sources told Eyewitness News Deputy Chief B.J. Council is leaving the department. Eyewitness News has learned Council was placed on administrative duty Tuesday and will be out of her job by Friday. Her departure stems from an internal probe of a Durham police officer's overtime pay. That officer earned more than $62,000 in overtime, exceeding the officer's actual salary. Sources said the officer's overtime was approved by the police department's second-in-command, who is Council. A news conference is planned for Wednesday.

Not content with the mess they created when the university threw innocent lacrosse team players to the wolves following a manifestly false accusation of group rape, Duke university has now instituted a policy for handling rape charges manifestly unfair to the accused. KC Johnson whose work in defense of the lacrosse team was outstanding, has exposed this outrage as well oin his site, Durham in Wonderland. Three Duke University students were the victims of the highest-profile fraudulent rape claim in modern American history. That fact alone should make the University particularly sensitive to the dangers of false rape allegations, and...

Durham, N.C. — Duke University has fired an employee who faces federal child sex charges. Frank M. Lombard, 42, of 24 Indigo Creek Trail in Durham, was let go from his position as associate director of the Center for Health Policy at Duke, a spokesman said. Duke Vice President for Public Affairs Michael Schoenfeld said Lombard was placed on unpaid leave at the time of his arrest June 24 and was fired Monday. Schoenfeld added that the university was cooperating with the investigation. Lombard faces extradition to Washington, D.C., to face charges that he solicited an adult to have...

History and social analysis of the Duke lacrosse case, retold in part from original documents; compared and contrasted with the social history of the Scottsboro trials.

(AP) — OKLAHOMA CITY - A pharmacist who shot a would-be robber six times was charged with first-degree murder Wednesday, and the prosecutor said only the first shot was justified. A security video shows two men bursting into the pharmacy May 19 and one of them, 16-year-old Antwun Parker, is shot. Pharmacist Jerome Ersland then is seen chasing the second man outside before he walks past Parker to get a second gun, returns to Parker and opens fire. District Attorney David Prater said Ersland was justified in shooting Parker once in the head, but went too far when he shot...

The chancellor and provost at N.C. State have been ordered to appear before a federal grand jury meeting in Raleigh this week, according to federal records released Tuesday afternoon. Chancellor James Oblinger and Provost Larry Nielsen were asked to bring documents related to the hiring, promotion and salary of former first lady Mary Easley. The subpoenas follow reports in The News & Observer about the circumstances surrounding Easley's hiring at N.C. State in 2005 and the expansion of her duties last year, which raised her pay to $170,000. Mary Easley has come under pressure to resign her position from Oblinger...

Back in 2005, a WalMart worker in Pennsylvania reported 59-year-old Donna Dull to local authorities after Dull dropped off some film that included shots of her three-year-old granddaughter in and just out of the bath. Dull was arrested—roughly, she says—and charged with producing and distributing child pornography. The charges were dropped 15 months later when a Pennsylvania special prosecutor overruled the local DA. Only Dull, her attorney, and police and prosecutors have apparently seen the photos, which are now under seal. She's now suing. In this follow-up article from the York Daily Record, state officials seem to be trying to...

  At the Liestoppers forum, Walt-in-Durham has a detailed rundown of Crystal Mangum’s appearance tonight at UNC. As I have noted previously, it is mindboggling that an academic institution would invite someone who the state AG had, with copious evidence, deemed a false accuser and not allow her to be questioned on the myriad contradictions in her story. It is all the more mindboggling that the only reason for this refusal to allow questions was to prevent the false accuser from saying something that could open her to a lawsuit.I should note, in addition, that Mangum’s p.r. representative had similarly...

Folks, I just got the news from Thomas Loflin, III - attorney for Elmostafa. "I am at long last pleased to inform you that Mr. Elmostafa has settled his malicious prosecution action against Hecht's, its security guard, and Hecht's successor corporations, the main one of which is Macy's Inc." "The settlement came just before we were to go to court on cross-motions for summary judgment as to the issue of liability on December 1st, and before court-ordered mediation set for December 15th. We had a trial date of March 30th (2009)." The amount of money settled for can not be...

A federal judge on Thursday rejected the appeal of fallen prosecutor Mike Nifong to keep his case in bankruptcy court. The ruling opens the door for the three exonerated lacrosse players to again pursue malicious prosecution allegations against the former district attorney. In October 2007, Dave Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann filed suit against Nifong, the city of Durham and its police department. The players claimed they suffered personal injury and emotional distress while the prosecutor, police and city pushed ahead with a gang-rape case that was flawed from the start. In their civil suit, the players allege the...