EDITORIAL: Danmell Ndonye should have been charged
Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice will not charge the 18-year-old who lied about being gang raped in a Hofstra University dormitory. That's a mistake.
Rice made a private deal with Danmell Ndonye who, in exchange for not facing a misdemeanor charge, agreed to pay for and undergo one year's worth of psychiatric counseling and do 250 hours of community service. It's possible the outcome would have been the same had there been a prosecution. Or Ndonye could have gotten up to six months of jail time, or she could have been acquitted and walked away.
Society, however, would have been better served if the district attorney had left her fate to the judicial process.
Rice argues that her deal is better because it identifies Ndonye, puts her on record admitting to a lie and guarantees that the young woman gets mental health treatment. But that's not enough to tip the argument in the district attorney's favor. Ndonye was already identified in media accounts and on Facebook as having lied. What's most disturbing, however, is that what Rice did implies a lack of trust in the judicial system.
Why prosecute? It would have let us know more about what unfolded that night. The initial handling of the incident raises questions about the timeliness of the police investigation and why experienced sexual abuse prosecutors weren't involved in the case sooner.
This was a very unusual case: A woman claimed she was gang raped, but from the outset there were claims of consent and conflicting information. Where was the rope that restrained her, and why did she have no bruise marks from it? Why did no one in the dorm hear her supposed screams? Why did the media find the student in the dorm room closest to the bathroom - who said he heard nothing - before police? Did she concoct her story to appease a suspicious boyfriend? Why didn't police talk to him? Why would the assailants leave used condoms, obvious DNA evidence, in the bathroom?
Ndonye accused four young men (a fifth was never arrested), who had no prior records. Their versions about what happened in the bathroom, while not what most parents would like to hear, were consistent. (One of those she accused is an employee of Cablevision, which owns this newspaper.)
Beyond the details of how law enforcement handled this case, are its implications for the future.
Rice justifies her decision not to prosecute because it would have a "chilling effect," making actual victims fearful to come forward. That concern is misplaced. Historically, police and prosecutors have been hostile to women who made rape charges, but the consensus now in law enforcement is that these cases should be fully and aggressively prosecuted. For legitimate claims to be taken seriously, however, society must also know that phony ones will be punished.
That's what will make the voice of every true victim even stronger.
Instead, Rice's resolution risks creating the perception that there isn't much downside to making up a story that could have sent someone to jail for 25 years. Even though the charges were dropped, the men's names and photographs are forever linked with one of society's most heinous crimes.
Prosecutors are vested with enormous power and discretion. It's best when the rest of the criminal justice system is allowed to balance the scales.
Link: http://www.newsday.com/opinion/oped/editorial-danmell-ndonye-should-have-been-charged-1.1490381
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
8 comments:
This was a very unusual case: A woman claimed she was gang raped, but from the outset there were claims of consent and conflicting information. Where was the rope that restrained her, and why did she have no bruise marks from it?
***********
Wrong. This wasn't a very unusual case. This was just par for the coarse for our man-hating criminal injustice system, as was the free ride for the liar. The only thing unusual about it is that the boys weren't falsely convicted and that we're even talking about punishing the liar.
I wrote the prosecuting attorney before her decision.
As citizens what recourse do we have?
It seems the 'shred the Constitution' crowd are able to get their voices heard...
She's baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!
Sgt. Mom,
in one of the previous posts, there was a link to submit an email/comment to D.A. Rice. That is a good place.
Anon,
Glad she is back. We are seeing a very large upsurge in woman hating comments here. It is a little disturbing. Understandable, but disturbing. Sgt. Mom's son was falsely accused. She should have our support, just as much as CBGirl (I'll get you those questions, promise), and others who have family members falsely accused.
Not charging Danmell Ndonye with making a false accusation is pretty much the final straw for me.
If the False Rape Society is about actively trying to curb false accusations, I want to promote that agenda.
If this is about stopping injustice and restoration of Constitutional rights for the accused - I'm willing to do whatever it takes.
If it's just about 'venting' and woman hating - speak up now. I have no use for that.
I'm not the enemy here.
File this under "Another Woman You Shouldn't hate"
This is a smart, bright woman who writes a very popular blog, speaks up for men's rights, and responds to private Emails.
She apparently loves the men in her life.
Outrage of the Weekend: Eek! A Male!
Posted on October 5, 2009 by lskenazy
Hi Free-Rangers — Speaking of our growing terror of anyone with a Y chromosone, read this:
My husband, who taught kindergarten Sunday School, is no longer allowed to help out with the preschoolers. At all. Why? A child fell down and hurt herself, and while comforting her he gave her a kiss. On the forehead. And apparently another parent saw this and assumed he was some sort of sicko. A month earlier he had a child in his class pass out napkins before snack and she went home and told her parents that she was the special helper in Mr. X’s class. They switched their child’s class. 99% percent of parents loved him, because of a couple of paranoid parents, and a church afraid of being sued, everyone is suffering. The kids come up to him and ask why he isn’t their teacher anymore. What is he supposed to say?
http://freerangekids.wordpress.com/
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: church, male, men, overprotection, pedophile, Sunday school, teachers | 78 Comments »
"We are seeing a very large upsurge in woman hating comments here."
I think that may be due to provocation by a couple of anti-male female posters that like to derail conversations and cast aspersions on the characters of many of the male posters here,to be honest.
I know that I personally LOVE women, but if several of them were congregating around me making negative assertions based on my gender, it might be tempting to return the favor.
But I want to make it absolutely clear that any of the females here who post in support of men's rights (you know who you are) are alright in my book. I am pleased to associate with women of such a high caliber. You ladies are an inspiration to me.
I think that may be due to provocation by a couple of anti-male female posters that like to derail conversations and cast aspersions on the characters of many of the male posters here,to be honest.
Anon,
As I said, I understand the reasoning. And while I don't have a problem with the anger, It WILL feed the trolls, who will then make the claim, "MRA's are just angry and bitter". Never mind that it is eminently justifiable, and sometimes, even needed.
I don't think the blind supporters of feminism realize just how much anger there is out there. As you said, the negative assertions, on a constant basis, cause different reactions in the recipient.
I've noticed that in a lot of women, this leads more towards depression. In men, anger. We're supposed to support and understand the women's position. The men's are written off by most as unimportant. Which leads to more anger. They just don't get the cyclical problems that ignoring what men are saying, causes.
If they ever bother to take men's issues as serious, we could make some headway.
The saddest part of a lot of this gender bigotry, is that I will no longer support a lot of worthy causes. I was asked yesterday to donate for breast cancer, and when I replied, "Sorry, I only donate to prostrate/testicular cancer organizations", the look I got was one of shock. The lady immediately started with the shaming language.
"Don't you have a wife or a sister or a mother you care about?". My response, "Yes I do, but I also have a father/brother/nephew that I care about too. And they get much less help than women do for breast cancer." Then I walked away.
There are quite a few women who just don't want to accept that men have just as many problems/issues, but we have so many fewer recourses to address them. That is, in part, why this site exists. It is the beginning of something to give voice and support for those who have been on the wrong end of the legal system, even having done nothing wrong. The process to get the system changed will be a slow one (it took feminism 40 years to get us here), but it is a fight worth pursuing.
So anger.... I get it. But controlled and focused should be the keywords. Channel it to constructive use (as much as possible). Write your congressman (sorry, congressperson), leave comments on news articles.... you get the point.
BUT GET INVOLVED.
Post a Comment