Posted on 03/12/2011 9:53:11 AM PST by Altura Ct.
Attorney James Evans, hired to defend some of the 18 suspects accused of gang-raping an 11-year-old girl in the East Texas town of Cleveland, said on a radio talk show that those participating were “absolutely” aware of the girl’s age.
Evans couldn’t be reached Friday for comment about his remarks to Gil Gross, who hosts a talk show on KGO in the San Francisco Bay Area.
But on the recorded broadcast Thursday, Gross asked Evans: “But what is going to be your defense for your clients for having sex with an 11-year-old girl? Who many of them knew. ... to be in middle school. So there was no doubt about her age?”
To which, Evans answered, “Absolutely not. There was no doubt about her age.”
He went onto say that some of the suspects were young and that he hadn’t completed his investigation, but he admitted it would be “very difficult to come up with a defense.”
Supporters of the defendants have contended the girl appeared much older than her years. Community activist Quanell X even went so far as to show reporters a scantily clad photo of her posted on Facebook.
Daphne Straughter, the grandmother of one the suspects, attended Quanell’s rally Thursday. She said, “You can’t tell she’s a girl. What are these boys supposed to do, ask for an ID?”
But many others are outraged by Quanell or anyone else talking about the sixth-grader’s appearance as an excuse to blame the victim for the November gang rape that onlookers documented on video with their cell phones. Texas law clearly states that ignorance of her age is no excuse and that an underage girl can’t legally give any consent.
Criminal defense attorney Mark Bennett in Houston said he was shocked by Evans’ remarks. While mistaking the girl for being older than her years isn’t a legal defense, Bennett said sometimes a jury would “nullify,” or go against the letter of the law, if they don’t think it’s fair.
Also, he said if the defendants were found guilty, thinking the girl was older might have helped them get lighter sentences. “But going on record that the defendants knew for certain that she was 11 just grossly aggravates the case,” he said.
Liberty County’s district clerk lists Evans as representing four of the defendants. Stephen Taylor, the only other attorney representing the suspects who could be reached, declined comment on the interview.
He noted that everyone might soon be silenced in the criminal case, as the prosecutors have filed a motion for a gag order that’s slated for a hearing Tuesday.
“Daphne Straughter, the grandmother of one the suspects, attended Quanell’s rally Thursday. She said, “You can’t tell she’s a girl. What are these boys supposed to do, ask for an ID?”
No, Miz Daphne, they should assault the girl, forcibly determine her gender by tearing off her underclothing, and then and only then commit rape, preferably a gang rape, then charge the taxpayers for your trial and defense.
What you s’possed to do, Miz Daphne, is to raise ‘em up your chillins so dey understand dat rape is a serious crime and dey don’t do dat ting in da first place.
USSCJ Ruth Bader Ginsburg once wrote a paper advocating the age of consent for sex between a minor and an adult be lowered to age 11.
So Ruth hasn’t a problem with this.
Yes. There will be significant plea bargaining. I am also curious as to how this idiotic defense can represent more than one defendant as clearly the defendants’ interests in this case are not aligned. So in addition to being incompetent, he’s also unethical.
There's no telling what may happen in this case, and it could turn into a disaster.
Girl's family paid off by money from who knows where, a couple of the older defendants go to prison, the rest walk. Mom takes the money and says bye-bye.
We next hear of them when they're a little older, but we don't make the connection at first because they were juvies in this incident.
They'll probably be in another state by then, too. Who knows which.
They didn’t care how old she is. They just didn’t think they’d get caught.
Some times a lawyer gets swaggering clients that bragged about what they did all over town.
In that case, a retroactive attempt to claim ignorance hurts the case in court far more than it can help.
Don't apologize for being outraged as any human being should be...I'm right with you. I'd kill these bottom-feeding scumbags myself if I had a chance. Every one who dipped it should DIE, and every one who watched and did nothing can go too. NO MORE EXCUSES FOR SCUM LIKE THIS, ONLY SPEEDY EXECUTION DATES.
“... to claim ignorance hurts the case in court far more than it can help”.
I get what you are saying. It is sort of like someone sugar coating the crime. It is more infuriating than if they agreed the crime was bad. Do you have the feeling that they may move this venue?
If that's true Quanell, the KKK are better men than you are.
Based on the lawyers and psychologists who try to justify pedophile behavior I am inclined to think that Ruth Ginsberg and other libs see no problem with raping or molesting a child. It is frightening to think that these people are in positions of power.
He better not linger in Cleveland too long. That guys’ a joke! He needs to keep his trouble-makin’ ass in Houston where he has alot of people who think he’s the great black hope. Damn! We sure have a dumbed-down culture goin’ on display in this country.
Yeah...show me ANY 11 year old girl who could be mistaken for an 18 year old. Honestly.
And since we all know ganging raping an 18 year old is ok....this should work as a defense.
You missed #6
6. Dey is Holder’s people.
In an important moral sense it makes no difference what was the defendants’ perception of the victim’s age or willingness.
These men accepted being known to their peers as someone who would choose to be the fifth, tenth, or fifteenth person to have sex with the same girl on the same day.
Thus they have no dignity or decency at all. This is what the so-called “black community leaders” should be talking about. Why is it that there should so often be found whole groups of young black men who behave utterly without decency?
The ‘defense’ here is so silly, and so wrong.
What if she had been 100 years old? Does that make it RIGHT for over 20 boys and men to RAPE HER?
I’m sure that will happen when they set foot on the street.
Clarification: by ‘defense’ here, I mean the defense given by the lawyers.
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