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DUKE CASE VICTIM TARGET OF HATE, WEEK OF MAY 25-31, 2006
by CASH MICHAELS
The Wilmington Journal
Originally posted 5/30/2006

Thanks to unrelenting attacks on her character and credibility by defense attorneys, the alleged victim in the Duke lacrosse rape case is now the target of hate by many who believe the Black woman is a “false accuser” of three indicted white players.

Looming doubts about the evidence in the minds of some of the public have generated hateful portrayals of the alleged victim in media reports, and particularly on the Internet.

Several websites have revealed her name (something media organizations voluntarily do not do in order to protect rape victims from further harm), address and other personal information, including her limited criminal record, in an effort to embarrass the accomplished North Carolina Central University student, US Navy veteran and mother of two.

Some websites have labeled her a “sexual predator” who is lying just so she can later sue “the rich kids” of the Duke lacrosse team for a false attack.

Ironically, it is a community-based website that was launched Mother’s Day in support of the victim, www.ourheartsworld.com, that has attracted a fair share of hate e-mail directed at the 27-year-old woman after only one week.

Sixty percent of the messages sent to OurHeartsWorld.com - set up by the NC NAACP, Triangle Urban League and the Black Press, - are indeed inspiring and supportive.

“Bless you, my beloved sister,” wrote “Soulj” from Brooklyn, NY. “In times of tribulation, turn to your God and to our Ancestors. Feel the souls of Black folk as we embrace you and your family, dear sister. You are loved, supported and fearless.”

Other messages, coming from Christian supporters and ministers, have encouraged her to stay strong in her faith.

“God’s Will will prevail,” wrote “Pat.” “You'll get through this. My family and I will continue to pray, because one voice is a whisper, [but] many [are] thunder.”

The uplifting messages have come from all across the country, and indeed, the world.

“I wish you strength and encouragement in the coming days,” wrote a supporter named Brad Polk, all the way from Beijing, China. “The white press will not break you. You have the legacy of black people supporting you.”

But there are those closer to home that believe the alleged victim is telling anything but the truth.

“She is a worthless, lying car thief out to destroy lives. She was not raped,” charged an e-mail from a couple who called themselves “Mike and Sue.” “She will have her ugly butt in jail soon enough for making these false allegations. You guys need to find a better cause, because this lying wh--- isn't it.”

Another e-mailer named “Whitney” wrote in part, “Is making up a bunch of lies to get attention and bling all just cool in your ''world?''

And some of the messages have gone far beyond just disbelief of the alleged victim’s claims, and instead indicted all Black people.

“You damn [n-words] make me want to puke. This wh--- was duly f----- by her pimp and sent to work high as a kite,” wrote an e-mailer named “Nick.”

“The cops came because she was passed-out in a car whose driver wanted her out, and lo and behold--I waz raped! Only a honkie looking for re-election would fall for that,” Nick wrote, referring to the election of District Attorney Mike Nifong.

“This whole thing STINKS so bad that even Je$$ie Jackson and Sharpton (Twanna Bradley) are keeping low key,” wrote Nick, referencing the Tawana Brawley case in New York Rev. Sharpton was involved in many years ago.

Nick concluded, his angry, racist missive, “Please join your ‘sisters’ IN AFRICA!!!! And take your ‘brothers’ with you.”

None of those hate messages have been, or will be posted, the website’s sponsors say, but they are being filed.

Even some of the supportive messages are edited to delete any direct attacks on Duke University, the lacrosse team or the indicted players.

The overwhelming number to OurHeartsWorld.com, however, has been supportive, not only of the “Sister Survivor,” but the effort itself.

“I want to thank you for the beautiful website you have created for Our Sister,” wrote a 65-year-old white grandmother named “Margaret.” “I believe in her. I cannot imagine what she is going through.”

“Thank you again for caring about this woman. It had appeared that no one did and that, in itself, broke my heart.”

Meanwhile defense attorneys have filed motions in Durham Superior Court this week, asking that Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong, the prosecutor in the Duke lacrosse case, turn over any toxicology reports that were generated from the alleged victim’s rape examination the morning after she says she was dragged into a bathroom by three players, beaten, kicked, strangled and sexually assaulted on the night of March 13.

As required by law, Nifong reportedly turned over his complete case file of evidence last week - consisting of 1278 documents, two VHS tapes and a disc of photographs – to defense attorneys for indicted lacrosse player Reade Seligmann, 20, of Essex Fells, NJ.

At the next evidentiary hearing scheduled for June 19, Nifong is expected to turn over evidence to defense attorneys for Colin Finnerty, 19, of Garden City, NY; and Dave Evans, 23, of Bethesda, Md.

But after reviewing the material, Seligmann’s attorneys complained that the tox reports, which they had every reason to believe were done, were missing. Nifong has said if there were tox reports, they were included, even though defense motions indicate that a nurse involved in the rape kit exam checked off on a form that none had been done.

Toxicology tests are considered standard when rape victims are brought in to determine whether a so-called “date rape” drug was used. When Durham police first encountered the alleged victim in a supermarket parking lot, they said she was “passed out drunk” in a car, though no alcohol could be detected on her. She was then taken to a detoxification center, and then to Duke Medical Center’s emergency room, where she was examined.

D.A. Nifong seemed to indicate to Newsweek Magazine in its April 18 edition that the victim’s “…impaired state was not necessarily voluntary.”

“…[I] f I had a witness who saw her right before this and she was not intoxicated, and then I had a witness who said that she was given a drink at the party and after taking a few sips of that drink acted in a particular way, that could be evidence of something other than intoxication, or at least other than voluntary intoxication?” Nifong asked Newsweek.

Kim Roberts, the second dancer hired to perform with the alleged victim at the wild off-campus lacrosse party where the assault reportedly occurred, has said that both women were offered mixed drinks right before they performed.

Roberts didn’t drink hers, but the victim did after spilling her own drink. That’s when Roberts noticed her demeanor deteriorate into a stupor for the rest of the evening.

Whether Nifong is holding any evidence back, though he’s legally not supposed to, is unclear. If there is evidence, as it was believed, that the victim was indeed drugged, many observers believe it would be a clear first step towards fleshing out what some speculate so far to be a weak case.

Unless the prosecutor has an eyewitness to the alleged assault in the house at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd. during the time that 40 or more lacrosse players partied, media pundits, despite Nifong’s ability to secure three grand jury indictments, have proclaimed this case dead and buried, especially with no conclusive DNA matches.

Supporters, and the family of the alleged victim, however, say they believe the D.A. has the evidence to go forward with a trial. Nifong told the court last week that he wanted to try all three indicted suspects together.

May. 28, 2006 - STAY STRONG - [note- because this is an attorney, message restrictions waived]
Dear Little Sister, - I am almost 70 years old, a white [civil rights] lawyer with five daughters, two sons, and three grand-daughters. I have read a lot about what these young men did that night. Some of them engaged in the tort of fraudulent inducement. They intentionally lied at least three times to you and Ms. Roberts (the second dancer) to induce you to come to entertain them. They lied about their names. They lied about the nature of the group--saying it was a small bachelor party so you would not bring bodyguards. They lied a second time about the nature of the group, saying it was the Duke Track Team, which implied it would be more "diverse" so you would have had some brothers there to protect you. There is also other evidence that "race" was a part of forming the employment contract, which of course is illegal and unconstitutional.
Based on the Duke students' intentional fraudulent statements, Ms. Roberts and you formed an employment contract to dance for a small diverse group for two hours. As a result of their fraudulent inducements, you and Ms. Roberts were both greatly damaged.
After you finish your undergraduate studies, I will be glad to help you get into law school, where all of the legal education you are now getting can be put to use helping other sisters whose rights have been violated by lying people. Your friend and supporter, --- Al McSurely
[Administrator's Note - Attorney Al McSurely has worked for over 50 years for the cause of civil rights, and has represented numerous Black clients in cases of race bias. He was honored by the national NAACP in 2005 with their Lawyer of the Year Award, and currently serves as chairman of the NC NAACP Legal Redress Committee].

http://ourheartsworld.com/