http://espn.go.com/high-school/story/_/id/9062015/two-steubenville-high-school-football-players-guilty-rape
This is a link to the most complete version of the story I have found. The whole thing is revolting.
Two boys have been convicted as juveniles. There have been no charges related to the fact that these teens were moving from party to party, drinking all the way. No adult has been charged with serving alcohol to minors. The kidnapping charges have been dropped. The kid who actually filmed the rape and put the video out on the internet has not been charged. Pretty sure there were more kids involved than just the quarterback and wide receiver.
After the judge handed down the guilty verdict, the quarterback apologized for the fact that video of the rape was circulated...said something like, "The pictures should not have been released, should not even have been taken." No apology for the rape itself. The little shit still sees using and humiliating a drunk girl as one of the perks of being a High School Hero. The wide receiver had a nice little sob-fest in the courtroom, "Sorry to have put you guys through this," with no indication of who "you guys" actually are. They were sitting there, getting hugs and pat-pats from their families and lawyers.
Nobody said, "I regret ever doing this." No one has referred to the girl as a friend, classmate or even a human being. They don't care that another person was hurt, damaged and ruined. They are just sorry they got caught.
This is about the rape culture. There were dozens of tweets captured and published where kids indicated that the girl deserved it, wanted it...but even if she didn't, it sure made for an EPIC party night! They don't think of it as rape for a couple of reasons. First, apparently, they used their fingers and not their underdeveloped penises, and second, she wasn't screaming and fighting. She was drunk and unconscious.
The quarterback's parents were all upset because the police came at 1:30 AM to get their precious son (I suppose they were embarrassed to have that seen by their neighbours), and even some of the news media have been upset about they boys' lives being ruined.
Nobody has been standing up for the girl. Nobody has said that it is wrong for these damn jocks to feel entitled to have whatever they want. One of the stories going around says that the girl did that sort of thing all the time. Another said she was set up by a jilted boyfriend.
Internet defenders of the victim have been saying that they hope the boys get done to as they did by her...but doesn't that make us just as bad as those kids? We don't have the excuse of youth on our side. All we have is the desire for vengeance. Seems to me that somebody's desire for vengeance might be what started this particular mess in the first place.
If any of my grandsons want to participate in school sports, you can bet your ass Grandma will be all up in their business, nipping any hint of such an attitude of entitlement in the bud.
Edited: New link. It seems there is a law in Ohio requiring that witnesses to a felony report it. Oh...and the boys' attorneys are appealing. Of course. Because a slap on the wrist is just too, too damaging for these poor little boys to endure... http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/03/18/174608680/after-steubenville-guilty-verdicts-grand-jury-to-weigh-more-charges
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