The alleged gang rape of an 11-year-old Cleveland girl that has drawn national attention was not just a one-time incident, but rather a protracted assault that happened on at least four dates over a three-month period by 28 different men.
The dates on which the assaults occurred included
Sept. 15: At least six defendants were alleged to have engaged in multiple sex acts with the child on this date. They included the four accused ringleaders, Devo Shaun Green, 20, and Xavier Montreal King, 17.
Oct. 25: At least three defendants were accused of engaging in multiple sex acts with the child on this date. They included Jamarcus Norris Napper, 18, Eric Bernard McGowen, 19, and Cedric De Ray Scott, 27.
Nov. 28: At least eight suspects assaulted the child multiple times this date at the home of one of the defendants and an abandoned trailer. In addition to at least three of the ringleaders, they included Kelvin Rashad King, 21, Marcus Anthony Porchia, 26, and Jared Glen McPherson, 18. Others present included juveniles charged in the case.
Dec. 1: At least five defendants were alleged to have participated in this incident. This included the four ringleaders and Carlos Bernard Ligons, 25.
Cell phones belonging to two of the suspects were confiscated and sent to high-tech labs to recover any deleted videos, photos and texts that might be connected to the case, search warrants indicated.
For her safety, the girl, a sixth-grader, has been withdrawn from Cleveland schools and has been placed in a foster home outside Liberty County.
The Times reported that residents in the town said the victim dressed older than her age, and frequently wore “makeup and fashions more appropriate to a woman in her 20s.” Further, they said she was known to hang out with teenage boys at a playground. The residents go on to lament the trauma that this case will cause the boys, some of whom are high school basketball players, who have not been able to return to school since the allegations were made. The newspaper asks how could these men (I use the term lightly) and boys have been ‘drawn into such an act?’.
They took her to a house, forced her to disrobe and repeatedly raped her. It doesn’t matter if they were high school heroes or if they were peer pressured into participating, that cannot be an excuse or a mitigating circumstance for their behavior.
One resident even blames the victims mother for the crime, saying, “Where was her mother? What was her mother thinking? How can you have an 11-year-old child missing down in the Quarters?”. The girl’s mother does probably deserve to be judged, but she is no excuse for what occurred.She should moderate the way her daughter dressed and not allow her to hang out with 20 year old men, but even if she didn’t, her daughter didn’t deserve to be raped.
How is it that rape is the one crime where the victim has to prove they didn’t ‘want’ the attack? Why do rape victims have to essentially prove their innocence in both the eyes of the law and the eyes of society?
