Duke Hoax: Day #226

Something deeply sinister has transpired in Durham, and it has happened in plain view of President Brodhead. He has witnessed a crime against his own students, and I expect him to bear witness to Durham and the world. - anonymous observer

Updated - today's items:

Comment: Life is cheap in Durham, and justice is frequently cheated.

LieStoppers:
A Durham Solution? - Earlier this week, murder charges were dismissed, at the request of the District Attorney’s office, for Julius Gray, the second defendant in the case of a drug related killing...Last month, Barry Evans, the man who shot the victim in the head and had subsequently been charged with first-degree murder, received a sentence of time served, a total of seventy-six days in jail, after being allowed to plead guilty to involuntary manslaughter.

related:
LieStoppers discussion - A DA's Office Run Amuck, No Sense of Proportionality
Herald-Sun (11/28) - Mall shooting murder charge is dismissed

KC Johnson:
The Stubbornness of Facts (see comments) - Although he has refused to admit so publicly, I’m sure that Brodhead would do many things differently if he knew how events would develop. Nonetheless, the administration cannot erase the record of what it did and did not do in late March and early April. Moreover, whatever excuses existed for Brodhead’s behavior then, his subsequent refusal to demand that local authorities treat all Duke students according to the same procedures as all other Durham residents—including students of North Carolina Central—is inexplicable....

comment on KC's blog:

An important fact all, (including KC), have missed possibly due to its secrecy, is what transpired during the meeting between the team captains and Broadhead. In this meeting, (allegedly 'protected' by a non-existent academic/legal privilege Duke made up), the student-athlete captains told their President exactly what happened during the night in question. With this, Broadhead looked them in the eyes and told them he believed them and instructed them to pen an apologetic press release to smooth things over. The did.

In retrospect, this was a spineless, manipulative move by Broadhead against his own students to save face....

LieStoppers discussion - Spineless Dick Part II

Updated - forum topics of note:

LieStoppers:
In 16 days, will Nifong claim this?, Dec 15th - Is December 15th when we will hear officially that Nifong and investigators are, in official proceedings, claiming that the Lineups were only to determine who was at the Party - not to identify the perpetrators - thus freeing Nifong and his co-conspirators from any wrongdoing in connection with the legions of rules and procedures that were totally disregarded in the execution of the lineups....

LieStoppers:
If the Accuser Backs Out, Reaction & Repercussions
TalkLeft:
Will the Accuser Show Up for Trial?

Comment: Sideshow Bob, a.k.a. Crash Michaels ran a low level bombing mission over the Duke case discussion forums starting Tuesday night. TalkLeft grand mum had to bring out the "insult deleted" and "snipe deleted" tools to get things back under control.

TalkLeft:
The Latest from Cash...

Cash Michaels, TalkLeft (November 28, 10:18:50 PM):
TO BOB IN PONTIFICA - You are part of a pity-party movement that puts on little Sherlock Holmes hats, gets out the magnifying glass and plastic pipe, and then harrumph’s, “By Jove, Watson, no sign of DNA here,” as if anybody in authority is actually listening....

LieStoppers:
Cash'n Cary

Cash Michaels, ABC11TV.com (WTVD , Nov. 28, 9:48 PM):
REPORT CARD ON DUKE THREE CAUSE - "F" (somebody please show Cash how to use the shift key) - Going on eight months now, and what does the "Free the Duke Three" movement have to show for all of its hate, anger, frustration, racism and emotionalism? Simple, that those who have participated in all of the above (which means there are some who haven't, so know who you are) have proven themselves to be indisputably irrelevant...
Comment: Mr. Michaels' use of the term "Duke Three" has become a pejorative blunt weapon he now wields like a baseball bat to strike back at his critics. It is very sad to see him fall like this. He should stop reading the forums and blogs until he can get himself back under control.

ABC11TV.com:
REPORT CARD ON CASH MICHAELS - "I" (incomplete)

Yesterday (11/29):

LieStoppers -
Brodhead Morning Briefing II (humor)

KC Johnson:
Green Light for Nifong (see comments) - Accepting the image of Brodhead as a latter-day defender of due process, of course, requires overlooking his silence about Nifong’s establishment of a "separate-but-equal" system of justice for Duke students. In the Nifong-orchestrated system, Duke students are treated according to procedures different than those used for other Durham residents, while they are meted out disproportionate punishment based solely on their identification as Duke students....

LieStoppers discussion - Spineless Dick...

related:
John in Carolina:
The Tragedy at Duke: Part I - A KC Johnson post today provides a detailed, gripping account of how key Duke University administrators acted when confronted with what was on its face a wildly improbable story involving the gang-rape of a black exotic dancer by a group of white Duke students during a party at a University owned house....

Michael Gaynor (11/28):
Sometimes It IS Simple - The Ninth Commandment is not complex: "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour." It is a commandment, not a suggestion. It obviously covers false gang rape claims. Yet the President of Duke University (Richard Brodhead) and the editor of Duke's student newspaper (The Chronicle) who wrote the October 27 editorial on the Duke case titled "Bloggers Get Point, Miss Complexity" each unhelpfully tried to complicate the Duke case....

Duke Hoax: Day #224

What's a more frightening concept: being railroaded by an overzealous, obstinate, politically ambitious district attorney; or having members of your own community applaud him despite overwhelming evidence of both his malfeasance and your innocence?

It's hard for me to imagine either of these scenarios, but for lacrosse players Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty, and David Evans, they have been a part of daily life for months.

These three are being condemned by professors and other students, not based on factual evidence or even individual character, but on nebulous accounts of an entire team's history of being less than "angels." - David Kleban, Duke senior

Updated - today's items:

LieStoppers:
Indicators of False Accusations — a training manual entitled, "Unfounded Cases and False Accusations." Examination of this training manual casts further aspersions on both the validity of the Duke Hoax accuser’s claims and the failure of investigators under the direction of District Attorney Mike Nifong to critically inspect those frail accusations....
discussion - FreeRepublic

The Johnsville News:
Duke Hoax: Statement Analysis, II — There are numerous discrepancies in Ms. Mangum's statement that need to be highlighted...Statement analysis looks at both what is said and not said by an accuser. On both counts Ms. Mangum's statement fails to pass muster as truthful. The bottom line is that since Ms. Mangum's entire written statement is one big lie, it is not surprising that almost every sentence falls apart under close scrutiny. Finally, why hasn't the main stream media fully disclosed Ms. Mangum's written statement and subjected it to expert analysis? Do they care about finding the truth?
discussion - LieStoppers

KC Johnson:
Proportionality — Most elite colleges and universities offer courses that in some way expose students to the thinking of philosophers such as Immanuel Kant, the Enlightenment theorist known in part for his theories of proportional responses to offenses against the law and ethical mores. Instead of Kantian ethics, the transformation of Duke and Durham into Wonderland has featured grossly disproportionate outrage...

David Kleban, Duke Chronicle:
Innocence and 'innocence' — What's a more frightening concept: being railroaded by an overzealous, obstinate, politically ambitious district attorney; or having members of your own community applaud him despite overwhelming evidence of both his malfeasance and your innocence? It's hard for me to imagine either of these scenarios, but for lacrosse players Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty, and David Evans, they have been a part of daily life for months. These three are being condemned by professors and other students, not based on factual evidence or even individual character, but on nebulous accounts of an entire team's history of being less than "angels."...
discussion - LieStoppers

McCain, RightPundits.com:
Disgraced Mike Nifong Re-elected — In my opinion, Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong should have been impeached from office, disbarred for gross negligence, and prosecuted for abuse of power. He blatantly used an obviously fake rape case to further his political ambition, garnering votes within the local black community in North Carolina to win a close election. His opportunistic gambit has cost several young boys their reputations, and has cast a shadow of derision across all students at one of the finest universities in the United States....

Updated - forum topics of note:

LieStoppers:
Christmas Future (humor) — from some unsorted pages left by Charles Dickens at his death...
New Expose on Nifong (humor) — The pandering continues...

LieStoppers:
Voices, Quite distinctive... — Did anyone notice how distinctive Collin's voice is? I'd remember it well, I think...

LieStoppers:
The Short Bus, The Stifle the Righteous Tour — From the back corner of the monster garage, it's the SHORT BUS ! (No offense to Jessie) Gone is the Nifong for D.A. hand painted sign on the side of the 1978 Bluebird ex Durm Head Start bus. Now we find, professionally lettered in it's place by a faithful HS advertiser, "The Stifle the Righteous Tour" Winning the election was not enuf for our agenda burdened travelers. The conviction and execution of the evil Dukies has now become their un-ending quest...

Updated - yesterday (11/27):

LieStoppers:
Our Collective Voice - A Duke Mom Responds to Stuart Rojstaczer (see comment from Mr. Rojstaczer) — Well, Mr. R., I’m a Duke mom and the ad certainly had an impact on me. I suspect this will sound kind of “right wing,” to you, but, truth be told, Duke at the end of the day is marketing an educational product, an educational experience, if you will, that is quite costly, and actually requires a lifetime of saving and sacrifice by those who end up paying those tuition bills...

related:
LieStoppers discussion - Oh, Boy - retired Duke Prof...

Stuart Rojstaczer, 40 Questions blog:
Back and forth — My piece of a couple days ago, Hot Air Versus Hot Air, drew some reasoned, civil criticism at Liestoppers. There is unreasoned, uncivil criticism elsewhere that I'm not going to respond to. But civil discourse deserves civil discourse and I responded to some in the comments section of Hot Air Versus Hot Air. Here is my response to Liestoppers, which you can also find on their site. Whatever comes after, civil or not, I won't respond to. I need to move on.

Comment: Thank you, Mr. Rojstaczer for moving on. We appreciate your dilettante interest regarding the injustice in Durham. Your hit and run commentary about a very serious matter impacting Duke University and Durham added no value to the conversation, and only confirmed that Duke is better off because, a weenie like you, has retired.

John in Carolina:
DUKE MOM PLUCKS PROF — It wasn't so long ago that Professor Stuart Rojstaczer occupied one of those tenured faculty “roosts” at Duke University. And it was only a day or two ago that Rojstaczer was strutting through the blogoshere gobbling about: "Duke lacrosse [blogs] with a severe right-wing slant [that] state outright that the charges against the lacrosse players are bogus."...Momtothree had him trussed and was plucking her first "Rojstaczer feather"...

LieStoppers:
Speaking of Hot Air... — It’s difficult to understand how Rojstaczer can recognize the tragedy that has befallen the Duke Three, suggest that Duke owes them an apology, and yet approve of the listening ad that contributed greatly to the false impression that the defendants were guilty of contributing to the racial divide that has been used as an excuse to promote, enable and justify their false prosecution.

John in Carolina:
"Faculty Survivors" (Nov. 27) — Last week's “Faculty Survivors” show featured Duke Professor Thomas J. Crowley who offered Hoax Case “items” he said people had overlooked...BUT DON’T TOUCH THAT REMOTE. I want you to meet the newest member of our “Faculty Survivors” cast, blogger and former Duke Professor Stuart Rojstaczer...

Michael Gaynor:
Cash Michaels: No "major crime" evidence against Duke Three — Let each reader decide for himself or herself whether North Carolina journalist Cash Michaels is, or I am, a misleader, deliberate or otherwise, based upon evidence. Set forth below is the information a reader needs to make his or her own judgment as to whether Mr. Michaels, who has taken pains not to express his personal opinion on the validity of the charges in the Duke case when covering it for America's Black Press, slipped up when he went online trolling for racists...

related:
LieStoppers discussion - * Cash stoops Low *, How low can you go?
LieStoppers - Cash gets it right

John in Carolina:
About DA Mike Knifing — Random House’s Unabridged Dictionary defines knifing as "to attempt to defeat or undermine in a secret or underhanded way." And in Wilmington Journal columnist Cash Michaels’ most recent column (online) we find...Mike Knifing...

E.V. Hoffman letter to Herald-Sun:
Civics lesson needed — In a Nov. 19 column, a Duke co-ed named Shadee Malaklou writes, "I assure Mr. Cheshire that these men are not innocent..." and "... it is just as unethical for Cheshire to present his defendant, David Evans, or his lacrosse friends as innocent victims..."... I pray Malaklou's parents are the only ones paying for her education, and I pray they have lots of money to waste.

KC Johnson:
The Bar's Lax Ethical Standards? — But even if it is somewhat more likely the Bar will act against Nifong than it has in other recent cases of prosecutorial misconduct, the record of the Gell and Honeycutt cases renders dubious the N&O editorial board’s breezy assertions that we can count on the Bar to do the right thing, to such an extent that the general public and editorialists should look away from Nifong’s misconduct.
LieStoppers discussion - Will Nifong be disciplined by the state bar?

related:
Mike, Crime & Federalism blog:
NC State Bar to Law Students: Ethics are Optional

Duke Hoax: Statement Analysis, II

updated:

The false accuser, Crystal Gail Mangum, in the Duke non-rape case, gave investigators a written statement on April 6, 2006, that is a total fabrication. There are numerous discrepancies in Ms. Mangum's statement that need to be highlighted.

One discrepancy is that in a March 16th interview Ms. Mangum told Durham investigators, Sgt. Mark Gottlieb and Inv. Benjamin Himan, that: "Two males, Adam and Matt pulled the victim into the bathroom." However, in her April 6th statement Ms. Mangum says, "Adam, Matt and Brett grabbed me. They separated us at the master bedroom door while we tried to hold on to each other."

So here again, Ms. Mangum's story has changed between March and April. First, on March 16th, she said two men (Adam and Matt) pulling her into the bathroom, then on April 6th, she said it was three men (Adam, Matt and Brett) grabbing her at the master bedroom door. Himan used Ms. Mangum's March 16th interview statements for a probable cause affidavit in order to obtain a search warrant for the Duke party house and later for Ryan McFadyen's dorm room.

The March 16th and 27th, affidavits filed by Inv. Himan also do not indicated who said: "sweetheart you can't leave." The affidavits simply say: "Someone closed the door to the bathroom where she was, and said 'sweet heart you can't leave.' "

Ms. Mangum's memory apparently improved over three weeks, because in April Ms. Mangum was able to recall that "Matt" made that statement. But, she then forgot that he also closed the door to the bathroom, instead he grabbed her. Her written statement said, "Matt grabbed me and looked at me and said sweetheart you can‘t leave." This is one more indication of deception, because recollections of a violent crime do not generally improve over time.

Here below is an attempt to list some of the many other problems, identified so far, with Ms. Mangum's written statement. First, for reference are all the portions of Ms Mangum's fabricated written statement that have become public, as reported by the News & Observer, MSNBC, and 60 Minutes:

"We went into the bathroom and shut the door."

"Dan knocked on the door and asked if we wanted a drink. We said yes. He gave us a drink and we continued to talk."

"Nikki and I started crying."

"We ran out to the car screaming and crying."

"Nikki told me that they were sorry and that they were going to give us $1200 if we stay. Nikki and I got out of the car and went back into the house. As soon as we got back into the house, they were more excited and angry. They were screaming, 'We’re going to f you black bitches"

"Nikki and I started to leave again, and three guys grabbed Nikki, Adam, Matt and Brett grabbed me. They separated us at the master bedroom door while we tried to hold on to each other."

"The boys hit and kicked me. Matt grabbed me and looked at me and said sweetheart you can‘t leave. He grabbed the back of my neck and said I‘m going to kill you (BLANK) (BLANK) if you don‘t shut up. They started kicking me in my behind and my back. Matt hit me in the face while Dan and Brett kicked me."

"I heard Nikki on the other side of the door, and when Adam opened the door she rushed in and helped Adam to get me dressed. They dragged me out to the car because my legs couldn't move. Nikki said, "What happened girl, did they hurt you," I said yes, and she said that she would get help for me."

"She wanted to take me to Raleigh and drop me off. But I told [name redacted] to take me home. She said that she would call the police. She took me to the Kroger on Hillsborough Rd. to call the police. She tried to get me out of the car before the police arrived, but I was afraid to get out. When the police came, she pulled me back into the car, and the police took me to the hospital from Kroger parking lot.

7:27 p.m.
I want to add that Adam ejaculated in my mouth and I spit it out onto the floor, part of it fell onto the floor after he pulled his [redacted]

Other parts that have been released:

"Brett asked Nikki for a threesome with me"
Nikki said:"We need to stay and make more money"

List of some statement discrepancies:

1. Ms. Mangum (Precious) frequently refers to Kim Roberts (Nikki) and herself as "we," or she says, "Nikki and I," this implies that the two women shared some bond. However, on March 14th and March 24th, Ms. Mangum made allegations against Ms. Roberts. She did not repeat those allegations in her written statement. She told the following stories regarding being victimized by Kim Roberts:
   
   
   
   • Ms. Mangum told the S.A.N.E. (Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner) nurse-in-training Tara Levicy at Duke University Medical Center that Kim Roberts/Pittman (Nikki) assisted the players in her alleged sexual assault and that Nikki stole all her "money and everything."
   
   
   • Ms. Mangum told Durham police officer Gwendolyn Sutton that Ms. Roberts had robbed her. Sutton's statementt said, "She also said that Nikki had stolen her money and cell phone."
   
   
   • Ms. Mangum also reported that Ms. Roberts robbed her to Officer Willie Barfield, who transported her from Durham Access to Duke Hospital. The News & Observer reported: "The woman told Barfield that 'Nikki' had taken all her belongings, including $2,000 in cash obtained by dancing at the party, her cell phone and her identification."
   
   
   • Ms. Mangum probably repeated the robbery allegation against Ms. Roberts to a News & Observer reporter on March 24th. But, the N&O declined to publish the allegation, because it was "clearly an opinion, offered without any substantiation," according to N&O deputy managing editor Linda Williams.


2. Ms. Mangum does not mention that she was robbed in the public portions of her written statement. One of the crimes that she initially reported was robbery. The application for a search warrant listed "Common Law Robbery (N.C.G.S. 14-87.10)" as one of the crimes. Additionally, Ms. Mangum does not mention any of her missing property in her written statement. When the police returned with a search warrant for 610 N. Buchanan Blvd. they were looking for the following property belonging to Ms. Mangum:

   Property belonging to Crystal Gale Mangum to include but not limited to a purse, wallet, make-up and make-up bag, cellular camera telephone, and a [white] shoe.
   
   United States Currency totaling $400.00 or portions of said currency (all twenty dollar bills).

   Ms. Mangum had totally phased-out the crime of robbery by April 6th and forgotten about her missing property and stolen cash.
   


3. In an interview with Ed Bradley for 60 Minutes, Kim Roberts refuted most of the claims Ms. Mangum made in her statement. Bradley read portions of Ms. Mangum's statement to Kim Roberts for the first time, and Ms. Roberts was surprised by the blatant lies that Ms. Mangum had told investigators. 60 Minutes reported:
   

   "Precious" says in her written statement to police that Roberts, who as you may recall went by the stage name "Nikki," was actually present when "Precious" says she was attacked by three men who called themselves Brett, Adam and Matt. When Bradley asked Roberts about this in the interview, she seemed surprised and confused that "Precious" would make such an assertion.
   
   "In the police statement she describes the rape in this way. 'Three guys – three guys grabbed Nicky,' that's you. 'Brett, Adam, and Matt grabbed me. They separated us at the master bedroom door while we tried to hold on to each other. Brett, Adam, and Matt took me into the bathroom.' Were you holding on to each other? Were you pulled apart? Is that true?" Bradley asks Roberts.
   
   "Nope," she replies.
   
   "Yeah. Her statement continues. 'I heard Nicky on the other side of the door. And when Adam opened the door she rushed in and helped Adam to get me dressed.' so she's saying that you helped one of the rapists," Bradley says.
   
   "She was never undressed as far as I remember. As far as I remember, she was never undressed," Roberts says.
   
   And, Roberts insists, she never assisted anyone in a rape, nor did she ever offer to engage in sexual acts with "Precious" and one of the alleged rapists, which "Precious" alleges in a statement she made that night.
   
   "And in her written statement 'Brett asked Nikki for a threesome with me' and she says you replied, quote, 'We need to stay and make more money,'” Bradley says.
   
   "I just don’t remember that conversation happening ever," Roberts says.
   
   Asked if it could have happened, Roberts says, "No, I did not say those words."
   
   "She goes on to say that when both of you went back in the house, she says, 'They were excited and angry. They were screaming, 'We’re going to f you black bitches,'" Bradley says.
   
   "I just don’t remember it that way at all," Roberts says.

   Video of Bradley interview - here


4. Ms. Mangum identifies four men who assaulted her: Adam, Matt, Brett and Dan. However, only three men were indicted. Ms. Mangum said, "Adam, Matt and Brett grabbed me," and she also said, "Matt hit me in the face while Dan and Brett kicked me." The names of the three arrested men (Dave, Collin, and Reade) do not match any of the names in her statement.


5. Ms. Mangum claims in the final April 4th police lineup that Reade Seligmann (identified by her as Adam) did nothing but stand in front of her and "made her perform oral sex." However, in her written statement she claims that Adam helped grab her and then helped her get dressed. The part about "Adam" helping her get dressed is, to say the least, very unusual. A gang rapist helping his victim get dressed does not sound like the typical behaviour of a violent criminal.
   


6. There are no words or descriptions appearing in the written statement, so far, about Ms. Mangum being strangled, as was alleged in the March probable cause affidavits. The March affidavits said: "The victim stated she was hit, kicked and strangled during the assault." Kathleen Eckelt, a certified Forensic Nurse Examiner, said:
   

   By all accounts, the accuser was already three sheets to the wind, along with some help from the Flexeril, so what would have been the purpose of putting a choke hold on her? Most fraternity type rapes don't involves physical (as opposed to genital) injuries. Why punch and beat and kick? Why not just wait until she passed out on her own?

7. There are no words or descriptions appearing in the written statement, so far, about Ms. Mangum being "pinched." Crystal Mangum told Nurse Levicy during the [SANE] checklist interview that she was "pinched," "pushed," and "kicked in my butt." Ms. Mangum denied to Nurse Levicy that she suffered physical blows by hands or that she was restrained or tied down in any way. She also specifically denied being choked. She specifically denied that fists were used against her.


8. Ms. Mangum's claims of being hit, kicked, and strangled during the assault are not consistent with a gang rape scenario. Kathleen Eckelt said:
   

   punching, hitting, kicking, and choking are classic signs of domestic and interpersonal violence. Yet, you rarely see these types of injuries in victims of rape alone, even of gang rape, unless you're dealing with the anger-retaliatory or sadistic type of offender or an abduction/rape situation....Most rapists will only use the amount of force necessary to subdue and control the victim.

9. There are no words or descriptions in the written statement, so far, about Ms Mangum scratching her assailant(s). That is how she lost her artificial fingernails, during a violent struggle in the bathroom, when she was clawing at her assailant(s). The probable cause affidavit said:
   

   She claimed she was clawing at one of the suspect's arms in an attempt to breath while being strangled. During that time the nails broke off.

   The scratching scenario was reenacted by Mike Nifong for Dan Abrams of MSNBC. For that matter, there is also no mention of broken off artificial fingernails in her written statement.


10. Ms. Mangum never identified, during any of her lineups, the two lacrosse players who she said, "followed them to the car and apologized."


11. She never identified the "three guys [who] grabbed Nikki," and dramatically separated Kim Roberts from her at the bedroom door as the clung to each other. This implies there are three unindicted co-conspirators.
    


12. Sexual assault expert, Ms. Eckelt does not think Ms. Mangum's statement, "sweetheart, you can't leave," rings true. Ms. Ecklelt said:
    

    The statement, "Sweetheart, you can't leave," said at the time it was supposedly said, in the context in which it was supposedly said, did not ring true to me. In fact, when I first read it, it was like that "nails on a blackboard" feeling to me. It sounded very false...

13. Related to the false sounding "Sweetheart, you can't leave," statement there were also no threats of harm made toward Ms. Mangum, warning her to keep quiet afterwards about the assault.


14. Ms. Mangum says in her statement that she went back into the house under her own power. Specifically, she said: "Nikki and I got out of the car and went back into the house." However, Ms. Mangum told Nurse Levicy that she was carried back into the party house. The Abrams Report indicated that Ms. Mangum said:
    

    "Brett came out to the car and spoke to Nikki and she said get her out of her. Brett was carrying me on one side, Nikki on the other side. I kept telling them no."

15. Ms. Mangum also made a remark to Nurse Levicy on March 14th that does not appear yet in her April statement. That remark made to Levicy, according to MSBC was:
    

    Nikki said girl are you down? I said no. I want to go home and see my kids. She said we need to stay and make some money. I wanted to leave. Something didn‘t feel right.

    "Something didn't feel right," describes the feeling you get after reading Ms. Mangum's statement. But, she does not seem to remember that feeling or her kids in her April 6th statement.


16. Ms. Mangum does not provide any unique sensory details in her statement. Her statement is also missing emotional elements. Statement analysis expert, Dr. Susan H. Adams says it is "the presence of unique sensory details and the inclusion of emotions -- that accurately discriminated truthful statements from deceptive ones." "Screaming and crying" are not unique descriptors. According to the statement so far, Ms. Mangum was not hurt. She did she feel any pain, and she did not have any fear during the brutal attack. The absence of unique sensory details and emotional elements are certainly strong indicators of deception.
    


17. Ms. Mangum does not seem to have a very long description of the criminal incident in her statement. Dr. Adams found that the length of the criminal incident section (longer is better) is another important indicator of truthfulness.
    


18. Ms. Mangum did not indicate, in the public portions of the statement, that she passed out on the back steps of the party house for about 5 to 8 minutes. Time-stamped digital photos show her lying on the back steps between 12:37:58 a.m. and 12:38:18 a.m.


19. Ms. Mangum added a comment or comments after she first wrote her statement. Specifically, there is the remark she added at 7:27 p.m. She said, "I want to add that Adam ejaculated in my mouth and I spit it out onto the floor, part of it fell onto the floor after he pulled his [redacted]."
    

    Ralph Thomas: "The more disorganized an account, the more the account is out of order chronologically and the more extraneous information is found in an account, the more the account becomes suspect."

    Ms. Mangum coming back later with this remark is another indication of deception. She remembered to add this remark in an attempt to keep her April 6th statement in agreement with earlier verbal statements.
    


20. The number three is the liars number. Kathleen Eckelt: "Studies have shown that the number three is the liars number. When deceptive people have to come up with a number, they'll usually pick the number three. I was kidnapped by three men. I fired three shots. I was raped by three men."
    
    Ms. Mangum, of course, picked the number three as her number of assailants.

Statement analysis looks at both what is said and not said by an accuser. On both counts Ms. Mangum's statement fails to pass muster as truthful.

The bottom line is that since Ms. Mangum's entire written statement is one big lie, it is not surprising that almost every sentence falls apart under close scrutiny. Finally, why hasn't the main stream media fully disclosed Ms. Mangum's written statement and subjected it to expert analysis? Do they care about finding the truth?

Two (slightly different) official descriptions of the crime:

First, from Probable Cause Affidavit dated March 16, 2006 (search warrant for 610 N. Buchanan Blvd.):

On 3/14/06 at 1:22am Durham City Police Officers were called to the Kroger on Hillsborough Road. The victim reported to the officers that she had been sexually assaulted at 610 North Buchanan Blvd. The investigation revealed that the victim and another female had an appointment to dance at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd. The victim arrived at the residence and joined the other female dancer. The victim reported that they began to preform their dance in master bedroom area. After a few minutes, the males watching them started to get excited and aggressive. The victim and her fellow dancer decided to leave because they were concerned for their safety. As the two women got into a vehicle, they were approached by one of the suspects. He apologized and requested they go back inside and continue to dance. Shortly after going back into the dwelling the two women were separated. Two males, Adam and Matt pulled her into the bathroom. Someone closed the door to the bathroom where she was, and said "sweet heart you can't leave." The victim stated she tried to leave and the three males (Adam, Bret, and Matt) force fully held her legs and arms and sexually assaulted her anally, vaginally and orally. The victim stated she was hit, kicked and strangled during the assault and she attempted to defend herself, but was overpowered. The victim reported she was sexually assaulted for an approximate 30 minute time period by the three males.

The second, from the Probable Cause Affidavit dated March 27, 2006 (search warrant for Ryan McFadyen's dorm room):

On 3/14/06 at 1:22am, Durham City Police Officers were called to the Kroger on Hillsborough Road. The victim, a 27 year old black female reported to the officers that she had been raped and sexually assaulted at 610 North Buchanan Blvd. The investigation revealed that the victim and a co-worker had an appointment to dance at 610 North Buchanan Blvd. The victim arrived at the residence and joined the other female dancer around 11:30pm on 3/13/2006. The victim reported that they began to perform their routine inside of the residence. After a few minutes, the males watching them began to get excited and aggressive. One male stated to the women "I'm gonna shove this up you"¹ while holding a broom stick up in the air so they could see it. The victim and her fellow dancer decided to leave because they were concerned for their safety. After the two women exited the residence and got into a vehicle, they were approached by one of the suspects. He apologized and requested they go back inside and continue to dance. Shortly after going back into the dwelling the two women were separated. Two males, Adam and Matt pulled the victim into the bathroom. Someone closed the door to the bathroom where she was, and said "sweet heart you can't leave." The victim stated that she tried to leave, but the three males (Adam, Bret, and Matt) forcefully held her legs arms and raped and sexually assaulted her anally, vaginally and orally. The victim stated she was hit, kicked, and strangled during the assault. As she attempted to defend herself, she was overpowered. The victim reported she was sexually assaulted for an approximately 30 minute time period by the three males...She claimed she was clawing at one of the suspect's arms in an attempt to breath while being strangled. During that time the nails broke off.

¹ It is not clear where the investigators obtained the quote: "I'm gonna shove this up you." It presumably came from either Ms. Mangum, Ms. Roberts, or one of the players. Ms. Roberts gave police her statement on March 22nd. Ms. Roberts did not have that quote in her statement.

Here is the breakdown of where the portions of Ms. Mangum's April 6th handwritten statement have come from:

"We went into the bathroom and shut the door."¹

"Dan knocked on the door and asked if we wanted a drink. We said yes. He gave us a drink and we continued to talk."¹

"Nikki and I started crying."²

"We ran out to the car screaming and crying."²

"Nikki told me that they were sorry and that they were going to give us $1200 if we stay. Nikki and I got out of the car and went back into the house. As soon as we got back into the house, they were more excited and angry."² They were screaming, 'We’re going to f you black bitches"³

"Nikki and I started to leave again, and three guys grabbed Nikki and Adam, Matt and Brett grabbed me. They separated us at the master bedroom door while we tried to hold on to each other."^1,2

"The boys hit and kicked me. Matt grabbed me and looked at me and said sweetheart you can‘t leave. He grabbed the back of my neck and said I‘m going to kill you (BLANK) (BLANK)⁴ if you don‘t shut up. They started kicking me in my behind and my back. Matt hit me in the face while Dan and Brett kicked me."¹

"I heard Nikki on the other side of the door, and when Adam opened the door she rushed in and helped Adam to get me dressed. They dragged me out to the car because my legs couldn't move. Nikki said, "What happened girl, did they hurt you," I said yes, and she said that she would get help for me."²

"She wanted to take me to Raleigh and drop me off. But I told [name redacted] to take me home. She said that she would call the police. She took me to the Kroger on Hillsborough Rd. to call the police. She tried to get me out of the car before the police arrived, but I was afraid to get out. When the police came, she pulled me back into the car, and the police took me to the hospital from Kroger parking lot. ³

7:27 p.m.
I want to add that Adam ejaculated in my mouth and I spit it out onto the floor, part of it fell onto the floor after he pulled his [redacted] ³

Other parts of the statement read by Ed Bradley:

"Brett asked Nikki for a threesome with me"
Nikki said:"We need to stay and make more money" ³

Crystal Gail Mangum Statement extracts obtained from:
¹ 'The Abrams Report' for June 19 - MNSBC
² Lacrosse files show gaps in DA's case - newsobserver.com, Aug. 6, 2006
³ Duke Rape Suspects Speak Out - 60 Minutes, Oct. 15, 2006 [Ed Bradley interview or analysis of images of statement briefly appearing in video]
⁴ One MSNBC graphic was shown that indicated the (BLANK) (BLANK) was N----- B----, which would probably mean the words were "Nigger Bitch."

update:
Added remark made to Levicy regarding, "Something didn't feel right."

update 12/6/06: Added items #19 and #20.
See Kathleen Eckelt, Forensics Talk(12/3): Behavioral and Statement Analysis II
and Ralph Thomas, pimall.com: STATEMENT ANALYSIS NEW INVESTIGATIVE PROCESSES TO HELP YOU UNCOVER THE TRUTH

Liestoppers discussion of Statement Analysis

Duke Lacrosse Case - TJN Archives

Duke Hoax: Day #222

The Duke rape hoax is just that, a hoax. I am a rape survivor and I can tell you that a true victim will never change her story that many times. No DNA, accuser files false charges in the past, she goes back to pole dancing within days of this so-called rape and she is a drug seeker. - Kerri Paradise

Updated - today's items:

Cash Michaels / Wilmington Journal:
DUKE PREZ SAYS RAPE CASE IS TESTING DURHAM — Brodhead warns of division - Calling it “an event of some fame…that’s been a burden to us all,” the embattled president of Duke University told the Durham NAACP Saturday that the continuing saga of the Duke lacrosse alleged rape case presents a unique challenge for people on all sides of the racial controversy to “stand together” for the truth, and "…protect ourselves and each other’s humanity."
discussion: LieStoppers, TalkLeft

KC Johnson:
Sunday Review — Defenders of the academic status quo often dismiss those who criticize higher education’s lack of intellectual diversity by contending that even if humanities and social sciences professors are overwhelmingly one-sided, students are discerning enough to detect their bias and not be indoctrinated. The case of Shadee Malaklou, however, would seem like Exhibit A for the critics’ case....

Updated- yesterday (11/25):

Kathleen Eckelt RN / FNE, Forensic Talk:
Duke Lacrosse Case and Behavioral Analysis I — I tend to focus on little details first and it was some of those details, right from the start of this case, that I felt either just didn't add up or else just didn't have the ring of truth about them. The statement, "Sweetheart, you can't leave," said at the time it was supposedly said, in the context in which it was supposedly said, did not ring true to me. In fact, when I first read it, it was like that "nails on a blackboard" feeling to me. It sounded very false...

related:
TalkLeft — The AV's story so far (part 2)
— Four perpetrators (Adam, Matt, Brett, and Dan) identified by the alleged victim
TalkLeft — Duke Case: Statement Analysis
TJN — Duke Case: Statement Analysis
TalkLeft — A Makeup Bag, a Cell Phone and Some Fingernails — Most significantly, these evil geniuses supposedly remembered everything except to silence the alleged victim. I have not seen a statement yet in which Precious claims that she was threatened not to tell anyone about the rape. Where was the, “If you tell the police or anyone, we will f#$@ing kill you!“ In every rape that I have ever heard about, whether on television, in newspapers, or in court, the rapist or rapists did one of the following things: (1) Killed the victim; (2) Left the victim for dead; or (3) Threatened to kill the victim if she told the police (usually with a weapon at the head or throat of the victim).

William L. Anderson / LewRockwell.com:
Post-Modern Prosecutions — What happens when prosecutors are permitted to introduce wild conspiracy theories? We see post-modern law in action...As the Duke Non-Rape case blunders toward an unjustified trial, we must understand that we are now looking at a full-blown application of post-modernism in the legal arena. First, we see many of the Duke University faculty members writing in various venues that while they seriously doubt that the rape, sodomy, and kidnapping charges against David Evans, Collin Finnerty, and Reade Seligmann are true, nonetheless the young men should be put on trial because of their race, sex, and class.
TalkLeft discussion - Article: The Duke Non-Rape Case

Stuart Rojstaczer / retired Duke professor / Forty Questions blog:
Hot Air Versus Hot Air — Lately, I’ve read blogs about the Duke lacrosse scandal that have a severe right-wing slant. They tend to focus on a few points. First, they state outright that the charges against the lacrosse players are bogus. If this were their only issue, I’d have no problem. But it doesn’t just stop there. They tend to go on and on. The lacrosse players are great kids and boys will be boys. Those that criticize scholarship athletics are just jealous and envious of those kids. And then there is a need to demonize the "Group of 88," the 88 faculty members that signed an advertisement in the Duke student newspaper decrying the state of race relations at Duke....there is no substance to the right wing blogs attack on the 88 faculty members

comment: Stuart Rojstaczer, until July 2005, was a Professor of Geology/Earth & Ocean Sciences at Duke University. He was a colleague of the recently infamous Thomas J. Crowley (Professor of Earth Systems Science). Rojstaczer, of course, pretends to know nothing about Crowley's recent foot-in-mouth column published by the Herald-Sun. That would be something that should deserve just a small mention given that Rojstaczer knew Crowley. But no, Mr. Rojstaczer ignores Crowley's extreme hypocrisy and instead goes to work as an apologist for the "Group of 88." Again, past actions justified their response even though their listening statement "ad is loopy." As for his reading blogs about the Duke lacrosse scandal that "have a severe right-wing slant," who is he talking about? Add vague and clueless pretend pundit to Rojstaczer's illustrious curriculum vitae.

related:
LieStoppers - Speaking of Hot Air...
LieStoppers discussion - Oh, Boy - retired Duke Prof

KC Johnson:
Highlighting Comments — The prejudice is assuming that people who are upset and outraged by Nifong’s treatment never cared about these issues before, never thought about these issues before, and only care because they are lacrosse players is a window into their own limited mind.

KC Johnson:
Best of the Case, IV — articles, blogs...

A Strippers Confession:
A stripper's confession — Using victimhood as a weapon and tool for personal gains will get us rich! I kinda feel sorry for those boys though, but you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs.

Updated - forum topics of note:

LieStoppers:
The Accuser's Story and the Lineup Do Not Match... — According to this particular story, several lacrosse players play prominent roles, although not indicted for the alleged rape. The first men mentioned are the "two players who followed them to the car and apologized." Note, that in the lineup, which was held a mere two days before this statement was taken, the accuser purported to recognize many players from the party, but never mentions the two men at the car. How could this be?....

LieStoppers:
Cash stoops Low, How low can you go? — Cash can come out and be a part of the Legacy of Bradley (get on the right side of the issue) - and make claims that he knows a dead man cannot refute...

LieStoppers:
non testimonial id tidbit... - In front of a real judge this little tidbit would destroy any Nifong/DPD fantasy that the lineup was not really a lineup but just an effort to see who was at the party....

LieStoppers:
TALKLEFT Reorganization — Many active users of TalkLeft forum have moved to LieStoppers forum...

TalkLeft:
You may have missed this! — From CBS 48 hours segment known for the interview with the AV's Parents...

TalkLeft:
Nifong vs McCarthy —I would like to see this case end for Nifong in a moment like when the army's attorney general Joseph Welch asked McCarthy "have you no sense of decency?". There are a lot of parallels....

TalkLeft:
Split Verdict Possible? — Could Nifong drop the rape and sexual offense charges and continue with the kidnapping charge?

Updated - older items:

Kerri Paradise letter to Herald-Sun (11/24):
Laughing at Durham —

Durham is the laughing stock of the country, you have an extremely, dishonest district attorney in Mike Nifong, a police force out of control, and an attorney general who doesn't care about justice.

The Duke rape hoax is just that, a hoax. I am a rape survivor and I can tell you that a true victim will never change her story that many times. No DNA, accuser files false charges in the past, she goes back to pole dancing within days of this so-called rape and she is a drug seeker.

I have been saying this from day one: the NAACP and the ACLU are killing race relations in this country. Durham wake up. These young men did nothing to this girl. It takes a real victim to know a victim, and she is not a victim.

KERRI PARADISE
Springfield, Mass.
November 24, 2006

KC Johnson (11/24):
Michael Gustafson Speaks Out — Engineering professor Michael Gustafson, who has offered a comprehensive critique both of his fellow faculty members and of the media/legal climate currently prevailing in the Triangle.

related:
Dr. Michael Gustafson comments and letters about the hoax-

Ugh., Nov. 19, 2006
Dear Mr. Saunders, Nov. 12, 2006
Outrageous, Nov. 7, 2006
On Midterm Elections, Nov. 4, 2006
Another Kind of Silence, Oct. 29, 2006
Will The Gates Open Wide, Oct. 24, 2006
On Voting, Oct. 22, 2006
Letter to the Editor (N&O), Oct. 16, 2006

James C. Armstrong / Duke Basketball Report (11/23):
James on Polarization — I am most concerned about the polarizing effects of people's responses to the lacrosse incident. Personally, I think, based on what I have seen and read in the media, that the three players are not guilty of the charges they are facing. On the other hand, they are not angels and certainly acted in an extremely irresponsible manner. I think many of us reading this will agree with that.

Comment: How can Mr. Armstrong possibly say that Reade Seligmann, for example, acted in an extremely irresponsible manner? Mr. Seligmann as a Duke underclassman dutifully shows up at a team party and leaves almost as soon as he is able to. He is then, by totally random circumstances, wrongfully charged with committing a violent rape and kidnapping. Mr. Seligmann symbolically could be any man. He is a real victim of this hoax, and what evidence did Mr. Armstrong invent in order to claim that Reade Seligmann acted in an "extremely irresponsible manner?" Or is Armstrong simply labeling the entire lacrosse team, without regard for individual actions? This sounds like quilt by association and it is part and parcel of McCarthyism. Does Mr. Armstrong read and understand what his own website has saying about this hoax?

related - Duke Basketball Report:
McCarthyism Revisited — James Armstrong does not feel it is appropriate to criticize Duke faculty under any circumstances and does not endorse this position.
Messages in Our Call: McCarthyism
Brodhead & "Friends"
LieStoppers: I don't have any Respect for these people!, dishonest argument

KC Johnson:
More Malaklou — Duke Basketball Report has a must-read column appropriately comparing Shadee Malaklou's recent Herald-Sun op-ed to McCarthyism...

LieStoppers:
A Gift From The Blogs (cartoon)
Thanksgiving Turkeys (cartoon)

KC Johnson (11/23):
Questions and Answers, III — It’s been more than three weeks since the last Q+A post, and it seemed an appropriate time for another...

Kathleen Eckelt RN, FNE, Forensic Talk (11/22):
Happy Thanksgiving! — Typically, with an unplanned, frenzied, disorganized attack, like this was supposed to have been, a great deal of transfer evidence is left behind....There are so many other things, like the accuser's words. They were like nails on a blackboard - so out of place. "Sweetheart, You can't leave." Sorry, but I've never had any patient tell me anything even close to that. The majority say, "Shut up and you won't get hurt," or something along those lines...

John in Carolina (11/22):
Good signs from NAACP's McSurely — In light of all the public had learned by late May about DA Mike Nifong’s “case,” Brooks said “simple decency” required that he and millions of others “correct the slurs” they’d uttered in March and April against the Duke Men’s lacrosse team. McSurely didn't like that one bit....

straighdope.com (11/21):
Where do police get the people for lineups? — Sometimes law enforcement officials ignore sound advice, to say nothing of common sense, when putting together a lineup. Perhaps Mike Nifong, district attorney for Durham county, North Carolina, and Durham police sergeant Mark Gottlieb were watching The Usual Suspects instead of reading the DOJ guidelines. Defense attorneys allege that a woman accusing members of the Duke University lacrosse team of sexually assaulting her was shown photos of … the Duke University lacrosse team. There were, in other words, no “fillers” at all – every picture she was shown, according to the defense lawyer, portrayed a team member. Not surprisingly, the woman picked three members of the team as her attackers.

'Scarborough Country' for March 30, MSNBC:
Via FreeRepublic.com — The Durham hoax, fraud, extortion scam was nailed by these folks within 7 days.

JOHN PATRICK DOLAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: It could have been a hoax. It could have been an ill-conceived hoax...

SCARBOROUGH: John, the D.A. screwed up. He‘s already overpromised, hasn‘t he?

DOLAN: Oh, yes. They‘re way out in front of this case too soon. This is what happens again and again in state prosecutions. They arrest people or they accuse people first and worry about evidence later...

SCARBOROUGH: ... It‘s going to blow up in their face.

DOLAN: It is.

Duke Hoax: Day #218

Updated - Today's items:

Mike Nifong's new license plate:



Michael Gaynor:
Sowell, Yes; NC NAACP, No — what needs to be thoroughly and promptly investigated are the ways that the Durham Police Department, the Durham County District Attorney's Office and Duke University responded to Ms. Mangum's bogus gang rape claim. Rush to judgment is what the NC NAACP did in declaring Ms. Mangum a victim....Out of tragedy CAN come triumph. But the truth must prevail and the NC NAACP must accept it... But it [NAACP] must walk the walk as well as talk the talk. Bogus cases should be dismissed, not tried.

Joan Foster, LieStoppers:
Home For Thanksgiving — Let's demand focus and civility. To all of you, friend and "foe." I wish a blessed Thanksgiving… one that will supplant old hurts and sustain new faith that understanding each other is still possible... and justice still unites us, and deception cannot divide us for long.

-------

Duke Basketball Report:
McCarthyism Revisited — So there are three basic points here to consider:

1. Malaklou admits Nifong is abusing the system
2. Malaklou doesn’t care that he is abusing the system because the lacrosse players need to be punished regardless of guilt in this particular case.
3. Malaklou infers that the alleged rape is not the first rape by a lacrosse player.
4. Malaklou also maintains that one of the strippers is not willing to put up with their allegedly criminal behavior.

. . . regardless of whether or not they have committed the crimes for which they are charged, [Shadee] Malaklou thinks this is perfectly acceptable behavior by a prosecutor. This is madness. Once we abandon the rule of law, the mob is never far away...

------

Abby Wisse Schachter, NY Post:
ACADEMIA'S PLAGUE OF LAME 'LEADERS' — Duke President Richard Brodhead didn't have the guts to demand some proof - or even to wait for charges to be filed: Faced with an outside community that was rushing to judgment, he canceled the entire lacrosse season and demanded the coach's resignation. Months later, it's now obvious that the rape/assault never happened....

Rocco Paul Valluzzo, Weston [CT] Forum:
Montelli will play lacrosse at Duke — Deciding where he would play collegiate lacrosse was not difficult for Tom Montelli. Several colleges and universities had expressed interest in the Weston High junior. Yet one in particular made him an offer he decided was too good to pass up. Come next fall, Montelli will take his talents to a higher level when he attends Duke University in Durham, N.C. Two weeks ago he signed a letter of intent to play for the Division I program and receive a scholarship.

KC Johnson:
Women's Studies Does Lacrosse (see comments) — The Duke women’s studies program includes 18 faculty members—of whom 13, or 72.2 percent, signed the Group of 88’s statement. The only academic work listed on the program’s webpage is Holloway’s article...Civil liberties, it would seem, are not a central concern—either academic or personal—to Duke’s ethnic and women’s studies faculty.

Hot Forum Topics:

TalkLeft:
Nifong's Case — Under the doctrine of "Know thine enemy as you know thyself" I have wondered how Nifong is going to present his case and what could he do to get around some of the obvious problems and how he is going to prepare his witness....

TalkLeft:
December 15 — is Judge Smith's defining day. Whatever he does that day will reveal the character of the man. Whatever he does then will be the main item in his obituary. Will he be remembered as another Judge Horton, or as merely another Durham-style judge in the mold of Stephens? By then he will have sat on this case for four months--was this case made special only in order to make it go slower? He should follow the law and quash the warrants, quash the IDs, and dismiss the case (as Gaynor pointed out). Anything else is merely toying with the public, and setting a terrible precedent for future N. Carolina cases.

TalkLeft:
Reasons for Change of Venue — There are many reasons for a motion for change of venue, For starters....A change of venue motion requires that a defendant show that so great a prejudice exists against the defendant in the county in which the prosecution is pending that he/she cannot obtain a fair and impartial trial. N.C.G.S. sec. 15a-957.

Yesterday (11/21):

Mike McCusker, Crystal Mess:
Give Thanks — In a testy exchange during cross examination by D.A. Mike Nifong yesterday, the defendant repeatedly answered, "Gobble, gobble." Some media outlets, the ASPCA, and increasingly venomous internet "bloggers" have questioned Nifong's decision to proceed with the case in face of scientific proof that a turkey is anatomically incapable of wielding an axe....

WRAL:
NC House Committee Looks At Prosecutor Error In Capital Cases — A seasoned prosecutor and a well-known defense lawyer [Joseph Cheshire] disagreed Tuesday about the extent of prosecutorial misconduct in the state's death penalty cases and what lawmakers should do about wayward district attorneys who withhold evidence...

Michael Gaynor:
"Kramer" meltdown moves Cash Michaels — Mr. Michaels is not only well known in Durham County, North Carolina, but the person covering the Duke case. As such, much is expected of him. Provoking racists, white or black, is something he should be far above....Ironically, Mr. Richards' racist rant prompted Mr. Michaels to publicly post his opinion on the merits of the Duke case. Mr. Michaels referred to the members of the 2006 Duke Men's Lacrosse Team as "a bunch of drunken, perverted, dishonest athletes who went behind their coaches back to commit a minor crime, only to be accused of a major crime, just because they thought they were men enough to hire lost women to debase themselves for their pleasure." Thank you, Mr. Michaels.

John in Carolina:
Chronicle: Letter — I asked H-S Editor Bob Ashley for an explanation of what appeared to be a "fake" story. Ashley said he wasn’t interested in a "debate."...for seven months the N&O mislead the public and denied it had done anything wrong in its use of "victim"...

La Shawn Barber, La Shawn Barber's Corner:
Duke Rape Case: Bloggers Black and White — Like it or not, race is a factor in the case. I believe it influenced Durham County district attorney Mike Nifong to pursue it in the first place (black vote, and all that), and now that he’s come this far, race and a hefty dose of class envy continues to motivate a man strangely indifferent to actual justice....the stripper-accuser’s actions have not been those of a victim of rape. She is motivated by money and attention and gang-rape fantasies, and an honest district attorney with integrity would have seen right through her dumb-as-a-box-of-hammers story.

Kathleen Eckelt RN, FNE, Forensic Talk:
Duke Lacrosse Choke Hold Revisited — There are several reasons why I seriously questioned that this choking occurred. The first, as I've stated, is the fact that she, admittedly, was impaired by the combination of the alcohol and Flexeril...It defies logic to think that in this type of frenzied, horrific scenario, with four over-sized adults crammed into a tiny bathroom, that the untrained person - whoever applied the choke hold - would have done so correctly, or carefully, so as to ensure that the accuser would not suffer fatal injuries.

The Johnsville News:
The Durham Strangler, II — Kathleen Eckelt: There are several reasons why I seriously questioned that this choking occurred...the accuser, Ms. Mangum, forgot to mention her strangulation for two days...the strangling allegation made by Ms. Mangum is just another in a long list of poorly constructed lies about a gang rape. It is a lie that Mike Nifong inflated and used for dramatic effect when he was interviewed by Dan Abrams of MSNBC. It is a lie that will follow Mike Nifong to his grave...
TalkLeft discussion - More SANE analysis of this INSANE case

LieStoppers:
A Curiously Mixed Message — On April 4, Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, President of the North Carolina NAACP State Conference, issued a statement outlining the organization’s recommendations for addressing the rape allegations by the community. This statement and the accompanying ten point plan...certain members of the local NAACP did stray from Rev. Barber’s mandate by joining the stampede to convict, rather than working to insure that there was no rush to judgment while fairness and a true determination of the facts was sought...

LieStoppers:
Cheshire's New Best Friend — Over the past several months we , and several others, have questioned the transparent motives of the Herald Sun’s slanted coverage of the Hoax. It appears that additional confirmation of the concerted propaganda campaign has come in the form of comments made by editorial page editor, Greg Childress...

Preeti, Preeti on the Web:
More on Duke's Culture of Crassness — Last April, in the midst of Duke University's lacrosse rape scandal, I coined a term to describe campus culture at my alma mater: culture of crassness. The phrase debuted in my April 19 column and since then culture of crassness has become a debated concept. Most recently, Chronicle columnist Jane Chong discussed it in her Oct. 25 column...

Adam Bonneau, Duke Basketball Report:
About Lacrosse & Issues Thereof — In the months since the night in question more evidence has, in fact, come to light, and virtually all of that evidence suggests that no rape occurred and that the players are innocent. Almost everyone – including most of those who initially assumed otherwise – agrees that the case is without merit, and the only holdouts are those who probably will not change their position unless the accuser fully recants her story...The truth is that most – perhaps all – of the people who jump to conclusions about rape accusations do it for reasons that have little or nothing to do with the specific incident in question...

KC Johnson:
Just One Case? (see comments) — “just one case” has, of late, emerged as the last refuge for Nifong enablers...The origins of the “just-one-case” mantra appear to lie with the “minister of justice” himself, who presented it when he unveiled the "New Nifong" at a July 28 press conference...The “just-one-case” argument is so absurd as almost to require no rebuttal...Nifong enablers, it seems, are determined not to hold the “minister of justice” to the ethical standards of either the state bar or traditional politicians...
TalkLeft discussion - Just ONE case?

admin note: days are counted from when Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann were charged with rape and kidnapping on April 18, 2006.

Duke Hoax: The Durham Strangler, II

updated:

Kathleen Eckelt at Forensic Talk revisits the infamous Duke lacrosse choke hold:

There are several reasons why I seriously questioned that this choking occurred. The first, as I've stated, is the fact that she, admittedly, was impaired by the combination of the alcohol and Flexeril.

Both of these drugs are central nervous system depressants - which means they can depress the respiratory system as well.

If you add a choke hold on top of this, I believe that the accuser would have been rendered unconscious almost immediately....

It defies logic to think that, in this type of frenzied, horrific scenario, with four over-sized adults crammed into a tiny bathroom, that the untrained person - whoever applied the choke hold - would have done so correctly, or carefully, so as to ensure that the victim would not suffer fatal injuries...

And how would the accuser be able to stand, smiling, on the back porch just a few minutes later?

Does that make sense to anyone?

It should also be added that the accuser, Ms. Mangum, forgot to mention her strangulation for two days.

TJN: From what we know, the first time the word "strangled" is seen or used in this case was in the March 16th Probable Cause Affidavit from Det. Benjamin Himan. It was used to obtain the search warrant for the Duke lacrosse party house. The affidavit said:

The victim stated that she tried to leave, but the three males (Adam, Bret, and Matt) forcefully held her legs arms and raped and sexually assaulted her anally, vaginally and orally. The victim stated she was hit, kicked, and strangled during the assault. As she attempted to defend herself, she was overpowered. The victim reported she was sexually assaulted for an approximately 30 minute time period by the three males.

List of witnesses that did not hear a word from the alleged victim about being strangled:

March 14th between midnight and 11:00 am:

> Kim Roberts, dance partner
> Angel Altmon, Kroger security guard
> Sergeant John Shelton, first responder and he also talked to her at Duke Hospital
> Officer Joseph Stewart & his partner, drove women to Durham Access

3 persons at Durham Access, mental health facility
(Alycia Wright, Mariecia Smith, and Gerri Lomuriel Wilkes) -
> registered nurse at Durham Access
> supervisor at Durham Access
> security guard at Durham Access

> Officer Willie Barfield, drove women from Durham Access to Duke hospital
> Officer Gwendolyn Sutton, talked to alleged victim at hospital

> Dr. Joshua S. Broder, did initial examination in the Duke emergency room.
> 2nd ER doctor
> four ER nurses

> Tara Levicy, the sexual-assault nurse
> Dr. Julie Manly, sexual-assault specialist

March 15 -

> the woman saw two doctors at UNC Hospitals (Dr. Yvonne E. Lai & Dr. ?). She reported neck pain but no strangulation.

She also saw her father the day after the incident, but said nothing. In one news report he said:

The retired trucker who lives in Durham said he saw his daughter the day after the reported attack, but she didn't say anything was wrong...

Her father, a quiet man who tinkers on cars as a hobby, said he saw news reports about the attack.

"I didn't know it was my daughter," he said...

Last week, a reporter stopped by the reported victim's house looking for her, the woman's father said, but he said he didn't know what was going on. He called his daughter and she said the district attorney told her not talk to anyone.

"(She) didn't tell us anything about it," he said.

That is at least twenty-one persons by this count, over two days, who did not hear a word from the alleged victim about her being strangled. Obviously, a true victim of a strangulation would not forget to mention it.

There was no medical evidence of strangulation. Dr. Julie Manly, the sexual-assault specialist, "found the woman's head, back, neck, chest, nose, throat, mouth, abdomen, arms and legs all normal." The only "signs of physical trauma," she reported, were three small, non-bleeding scratches to the knee and ankle.

It looks like Ms. Mangum first made the strangling allegation on March 16th when she was interviewed by Gottlieb and Himan. Note that the Durham investigators used the word strangled instead of choked to describe the crime. Himan then incorporated that allegation in his probable cause affidavit/search warrant for the Duke lacrosse party house.

There is no doubt that the strangling allegation made by Ms. Mangum is just another in a long list of poorly constructed lies about a gang rape. It is a lie that Mike Nifong inflated and used for dramatic effect when he was interviewed by Dan Abrams of MSNBC. It is a lie that will follow Mike Nifong to his grave.

update: Again, it will be extremely interesting to read Ms. Mangum's written statement when it is released in its entirety. She eventually made her written statement on April 6th. How did she describe the strangulation on that date? Could she have forgotten to mention that she was strangled? So far, the pieces of her written statement that have been released do not include any details or descriptions of the strangulation part of the crime.

Sources:
Duke Lacrosse Choke Hold Revisited - Forensic Talk, Nov. 21, 2006
Duke case: The Durham Strangler - TJN, Sept. 4, 2006
Nifong Lies & Deception - TJN, June 17, 2006
'The Abrams Report,' - April 7, 2006 - MSNBC

Duke Lacrosse Case - TJN Archives

Duke Hoax: Day #216

"I’m unaware of any newspaper that has a policy of printing factually inaccurate letters. Any newspaper, that is, except for the Herald-Sun" - KC Johnson

Updated - Today's Items:

Michael Gaynor:
Jury nullification nonsense — Ms. Malaklou's "thinking" demonstrates the danger that jury nullification will hang the Duke case if it is tried instead of dismissed. Ms. Malaklou, now of the Wonderland that is Durham, North Carolina, is like Humpty Dumpty in Alice's Wonderland: she blithely misuses words like angry, innocent and inaccuracy to promote her warped view...

John in Carolina:
A Duke student misses — [Shadee] Malaklou’s sexism, major factual error, smugness and her willingness to embrace a DA who will ignore innocence and act instead to satisfy her prejudices? It's sad to think Malaklou is no doubt sincere and unaware of her actual thought processes and values....

LieStoppers:
Like Teacher, Like Student: Duke Student. Shadee Malaklou Offers Her View. — Apparently emboldened by the precedent that one needs neither to follow the news closely, nor have a basic understanding of the facts, Duke Senior Shadee Malaklou drafted her own full-length guest column for the Herald Sun, which Snooze Room editor Bob Ashley happily printed on Sunday under the headline "Lacrosse Players Far From Innocent."

related:

Shadee Malaklou: I am proud to admit that I am both a feminist and a radical, that I don't neccessarily believe in working within the system to change things, and that I often stick out on campus more than I want to...My pride-and-joy program last year was the Vagina Workshop (that's right: VAGINA). I encourage you to look forward to similar programs this year by either myself or the other fabulous members of the Women's Center staff. And remember: the Women's Center gets paid to offer programs that interest the gender-conscious Duke student body, so do yourself a favor and come in with program suggestions. _{Women's Center}

Shadee Malaklou guest column for Herald-Sun:
Lacross Players Far From Innocent - Very rarely are the Duke lacrosse players not drinking or partying....Unfortunately, in spite of all our education and opportunities, Duke women are not so strong...or smart. We'll giggle it off, and sometimes even find a man more endearing for his drunken slip-ups. Even if one of those slip-ups rapes us.

David Highlands, letter to Herald-Sun:
Two reasons why Nifong should drop rape case — Two reasons why District Attorney Mike Nifong should drop the case against the Duke lacrosse players: 1) They may be libertines and stupid for putting themselves in such a compromising position, but they are clearly not guilty of rape and/or assault; and 2) The heavy criticism he continues to receive over his intransigence will give other DAs pause when actual victims make similar accusations....

Beth Brewer, letter to Herald-Sun:
Read the record - Perhaps [Laura] Blasberg should read all of MSM's (mainstream media's) coverage on the Duke lacrosse case....One of the many ironies in this case is that the prosecution, not the defense, seems to be resorting to smoke and mirrors since evidence hoped for didn't materialize.

KC Johnson:
The Herald-Sun's Peculiar Letters Policy — From time to time, I’ve published letters to the editor, in various newspapers. The normal practice, upon the letter’s acceptance, is for the paper to check any factual assertions contained in the letter. If the paper can’t verify the facts, the letters editor asks the writer to do so; if the writer, in turn, can’t verify the facts, the letter must be modified. I’m unaware of any newspaper that has a policy of printing factually inaccurate letters. Any newspaper, that is, except for the Herald-Sun, at least if those letters reflect Editor Bob Ashley’s party line...
TalkLeft discussion - A Chan Hall at the Herald-Sun

Updated - Hot forum topics:

ABC11 TV
Cash Michaels (defrocked movie critic) trolls for trouble — "Kramer," the Patron Saint of Duke Three Supporters — Pathetic, as in all of you. The case is going forward. Unless GOD or Judge Smith says otherwise, there will be a trial, and a fair jury will be impaneled to hear it. And the best part about this is,, there is absolutely nothing any of you can do about it except sit there at your second-hand keyboards and sulk about DNA, gravel and poledancing. Like I said, "Kramer" speaks for all of you who have racially castigated Durham. He speaks for you, indeed!
related - TMZ.com — "Kramer's" [Michael Richards] Racist Tirade -- Caught on Tape

TalkLeft:
Cash Michaels 11/19 More "balanced reporting" — Mr. Michaels comments and does more trolling — "it would not be smart to inflame the potential jury pool if the case goes to trial. Put me down all you want, but disrespecting Durham is counterproductive to the point of lunacy. Go ahead, continue to display just how intelligent you really are by cutting the throat of your own cause."

Jury Duty — The voir dire for this trial should be mighty interesting, with lots of questions like these. I think Duke professors would be excluded by the judge. Thank goodness.

A great precedent set here — ...So when a mentally challenged rural goober accuses Ted Koppel of sodomizing him with the help of small green men that emerged from a spacecraft, Mr. Koppel must post bond, hire a lawyer and wait patiently for a trial from the town of said goober. It matters not that Mr. Koppel was in Iran the time of the attack. Since we werent in the cornfield at the time, we dont really know what happened. A jury must decide. The DA (who is a rabid Star Trek fan) believes the goober...

Yesterday (11/19):

Michael Gustafson (Duke Professor), DukeEgr93 blog:
Ugh. — some things are still very disturbing about the way the administration has proceeded...This one is from President Brodhead from the Durham Chamber of Commerce (from WRAL):

"If our students did what is alleged, it is appalling to the worst degree. If they didn't do it, whatever they did is bad enough," he said. "Of the things that have pained me about this episode, one of the greatest ones is all the publicity that this has brought, unwished to Duke University and, indeed, Durham."

This quote is from April 20th. The "whatever they did is bad enough" part is just criminally negligent - by April 20th, nothing was really known...

Jason Trumpbour, Friends of Duke Univ. (FODU):
The Herald-Sun's Distorted Worldview — On Friday, we received a message from Debrah Correll, a Chapel Hill resident who has a long history of writing op-ed pieces for the Herald-Sun. Her exchange with an editor at the Herald-Sun provides some insight into the true motives of the Herald-Sun in taking the position that it has. She has graciously allowed us to reproduce her message...

John in Carolina:
"Duke faculty duties" — I appreciate reader comments regarding my “Duke faculty duties” letter to Professor Karla Holloway, a signatory of the Duke faculty “Group of 88’s” “listening” statement advertisement and a member of the Campus Cultural Initiative committee....

John in Carolina:
Sowell: Right early and now — One of my favorite pundits is syndicated columnist Thomas Sowell. He almost always "gets it right;" usually before most others. He’s been that way with the Duke lacrosse case. Back in April “righteous townies” were banging pots, Duke faculty were demanding to know “why they haven’t been expelled?’, and the Raleigh News & Observer was running the “Swagger” story and publishing the "vigilante" poster....

Cash Michaels, Wilmington Journal:
'DUKE THREE' SUPPORTERS BELIEVE BLACKS ARE "WHITE-HATING RACISTS" — Failing to oust the prosecutor, Duke Three supporters are now focused on derailing Nifong's prosecution...Gaynor charges that Blacks in Durham want legal payback...Gaynor alleged in a published op-ed that Joyner "seems to believe that a Durham jury may convict when jurors elsewhere would not." ...Whether these young men are guilty or not is a decision that a jury will make. I'm not venturing out to try to take on the role of juror. That is something that I have avoided, and will continue to.

TalkLeft (hot topic) discussion - Cash Michaels 11/19 More "balanced reporting"

Marie: I'm not sure there is much that is honest about you [Cash Michaels] either. I, for one, believe that you know that no rape took place that night. I think you know the players are innocent. At the very least you strongly suspect it. But you're hiding. You are hiding behind politics. And that's not honest.

The Johnsville News:
Bob Ashley - Rotten Journalist, Rotten Businessman — Bob Ashley will not just be remembered as a clueless propagandist and hoax enabler for Mike Nifong, but also as a clueless businessman who drove the Herald-Sun to ruin. It won't be too long before they start handing out the free Herald-Sun advertising pamphlet on Durham street corners.

KC Johnson:
Sunday Items — Ashley has, at last, revealed his basic agenda: the purpose of a trial is not to satisfy justice; or to try only those for whom probable cause is established; or even to uphold standards of legal ethics. The purpose of a trial is, instead to "reassure" an unspecified segment of the minority of Durham County residents who cast ballots for Nifong....
Duke Basketball Report - H-S Takes a Hit