There Are So Many Things Wrong With This Alabama Middle School Rape Case

[freshwest]

By Tom McKay

...No one was fired as a result of the incident, which left the victim traumatized. No criminal charges were filed against school officials or the assailant. In fact, as Gawker reports, an assistant principal who knew of the plan was promoted to principal at a nearby school district despite failing to prevent the incident. The teacher's aide who originally proposed the sting was put on leave and later resigned...

It gets worse, according to CNN: "Vice Principal Dunaway testified that the girl was responsible for herself once she entered the bathroom, according the brief... Federal attorneys say details about the severity of the (boy's previous attacks) are unavailable because school administrators shredded the boy's disciplinary files..."

"It's a sad situation," Principal Ronnie Blair told media in 2010. "At the same time, I feel very comfortable with the way the situation was handled. That's about all I can say."

In other words, despite orchestrating the entire incident and then shredding relevant records after the fact, everyone involved in creating the situation that led to the rape is insisting that it was not their fault but the unidentified victim's. Other than being textbook victim-blaming, the Department of Justice argues that the district's "deliberate indifference to known acts of peer sexual harassment" constitutes a violation of Title IX. Hopefully the district and its callous, irresponsible administrators will be held responsible for their horrific judgement, but the damage they've inflicted on the victim can never be undone...

The reason given for this 'botched' trap was that the girl was promised school authorities would be there to protect her, but went to the wrong bathroom. She thought nothing was going to happen, but they never came to her aid.

The fact that such children should never be let out of one's sight is lost on these people. I'll skip the LIHOP and go with, didn't give a damn.

The girl has been moved out of state, and the boy that anally raped her was returned to the school within a month. No one is being held criminally accountable by the state of Alabama, including the rapist. Another factor the story does not address, is if the boy was also special needs. In that case, unless there is a highly system, these things are simply blown off as if these folks are barnyard animals. I'll note that this happens to special needs boys, too. This also said to have been in an affluent area.

And more at this link:

http://mic.com/articles/99464/there-are-so-many-things-wrong-with-this-alabama-middle-school-rape-case

I saw this recently and planned to make a post. I checked and saw another source of the story was posted in GD and posted part of this there:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=5559300

I saw Seabeyond had posted there and thought HOFers might want to give their opinions on the environment that fostered the rape culture in that school.

A few points:

At 14 years old, she is a minor, legally unable to decide to play bait. Her parents/guardians were not informed of this scheme and it's unlikely they would approve of putting her in danger this way. She was incapable of consent herself, legally.

As a special needs child, she is unlikely to have the maturity of a 14 year old. In fact, many are not considered able to make such decisions even after they reach the age of 18. Dependent on level of disability, some fall under the statues of vulnerable adults and require a guardian for the rest of their lives in order to protect them from others, or even things they might do to injure themselves.

The school is legally responsible as custodian of all students and their safety while on school property, or activities run by the school. Example is if a football player is injured, the school must pay for his care. A poster on the other thread made a remark that the rapist might be an athlete who is being protected.

An unfortunate number of so-called 'normal' kids and adults intentionally seek out special needs kids or vulnerable adults to victimize and almost always get away with it. The disabled person, like a very small child, is not regarded as a reliable witness to their abuse. The story said the DOJ proved she was raped by physical tearing, etc. And may be in the records shredded by the school to destroy evidence.

Dependent on state, county, city and district, policies vary. Funding for special education is always on the chopping block and administrators and state legislators try to cut funds for them yearly. They object to federal laws giving the right to an education. as they say these folks won't amount to anything in the long run to society. I beg to differ, having seen success stories. Some school districts resent having to pay for the costs of special needs students, and a number of them, even in wealthy areas, refuse to accept them as students. So they are not respected in some areas as human beings.

This is just the tip of the iceberg as to what happens to special needs students and vulnerable adults. Some police departments scapegoat disabled persons to clear up their case loads and get easy convictions by confessions. The disabled person doesn't grasp the implication of signing statements to please the authorities.

Some have been sent to prison for murders or serious crimes they did not commit, after being promised they could go home if they signed confessions that they could not read.

Special needs kids and vulnerable adults are the least likely to be given fair treatment or to be believed, are often unable to explain what has happened, and the subject of more sexual, financial and physical abuse than almost any other group.

And this is worldwide, except in tiny oasis's in which good people seek to protect them in social safety net programs. And those who don't know them are coming for that money for themselves.

[gollygee]

1. People involved need more than just being fired

There is a criminal level of negligence and responsibility for what happened.

And the rapist is still in the school? Says so much.

[Feral Child]

2. Truly horrifying story.

Every attempt has been made to white-wash this case out of existence.

The assistant principal and the TA both needed to be prosecuted and deserve jail-time.

The assailant needs to be in confined a medical facility for the safety of himself and other students.

[ismnotwasm]

3. This literally makes me nauseous

What the hell?

[freshwest]

4. It's more common than one might think, except for the 'sting' aspect. Typical, more like it.

[nomorenomore08]

5. ...

[mercuryblues]

6. this is

beyond words. What the supposed adults did is vile. Everyone involved should be in prison and not allowed near any kids ever again. The boy? They knew he had something wrong with him and instead of dealing with him, they sent a 14 year old in to get raped.

[Wella]

7. So a middle school principal runs an under cover operation that even the police would not have run?

The hubris and stupidity in that principal's personality is alarming.

While the teacher's aid may have suggested the scheme, that person is a low level employee with no authority. The fact that she is the only one to have lost her job out of this is just a testament to her low status.

The real person who should be behind bars is the principal who authorized both the crime--and since he was not the police, it wasn't a legitimate sting operation, but a crime--and the cover up.