It took a while — mercilessly long for the families involved - but the three Duke University lacrosse players received what they’ve been seeking — absolute exoneration.
The three players, David Evans, Reade Seligman, Colin Finnerty, had all charges against them dropped by North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper, in an unprecedented move. Cooper wrote a 21-page summary of the case, which was released Friday. In it, he said the Duke players were “innocent” and there was “no credible evidence of an attack.” And the accuser has “insurmountable credibility issues.”
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Cooper called the Durham District Attorney Michael Nifong a “rogue prosecutor” and said he had been in a “tragic rush to accuse, and failed to verify the allegations by a stripper” who had attended a team party two years ago. Cooper’s report also said Nifong never questioned the accuser about the inconsistencies in her story; Nifong simply “believed her,” according to excerpts about the case.
The case is a classic illustration of how a prosecutor, in a bid for re-election, put politics ahead of evidence. Nifong is facing ethics charges and possible disbarment. He likely faces enormous civil litigation from the families who vowed on a “60 Minutes”episode they will haunt him for the rest of their lives.
The story was one that brought together race and class and recriminations from all over the country. One irony is that civil rights leaders Rev. Jesse Jackson and Rev. Al Sharpton, who both called for the head of radio shock jock Don Imus recently, also called for the three Duke students to be expelled and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Now that the case has fallen apart, and Cooper has dismissed the charges, and Nifong has issued an apology to the families that has been received as a “too little, too late,” Messrs. Jackson and Sharpton are remarkably quiet.
The question, of course, is where do these young men go to get their reputations back?
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