"horrific." SORRY!

I hope justice is served.

That said, family members and other emotionally involved people should really stay out of the legal stuff. Let the lawyers do their lawyer thing... your interference could ruin the whole case.

Just like what happened in that Natalie Holloway MWG story from a few years back. The girl's mother wouldn't let the cops do their jobs and the prime suspect ended up walking right out the door.

@2,

They stopped cooperating the felony charges were dropped in favor of a single misdemeanor. Furthermore, "[Coleman] said she returned to Rice’s office, declining to sign a form backing up her previous day’s statement and telling Rice she wished to participate in a deposition for the remaining misdemeanor charge."

@5 This makes a lot of sense. And, yes, conviction for a lesser-included would likely create a double jeopardy situation.

Why would anyone, especially a14 yo and a 13 yo want to go through a rape trial when the only possible conviction would be a slap on the wrist for something like misdemeanor assault or giving alcohol to a minor?

Unless I missed it, I'm really surprised no one has posted about the condescending "College Women: Stop Getting Drunk" article from Emily Yoffe yet:

http://www.slate.com/articles/double_x/d…

Because teaching young people about the dangers of drug use totally works, and college girls are idiots who have never heard before that binge drinking is dangerous. Why not at least focus that redundant, largely ineffective lecture on college men who were drinking at the time they decided raping girls was a good idea?

I hope that federal grand jury brings some charges against the local prosecutor while they're at it. Corrupt bastard.

This is a terrible horrible situation and the perpetrators should be charged appropriately to bring justice!

However, I read the whole story and there were some extenuating circumstances that might have worked against the girls.

For one, they had a jar of booze in their room that they would drink from on occasion, the night in question being one of them. Their brother chastised them on the night in question about not dealing with the jocks. However the older girl knew the 17 year old and apparently had expressed some interest at school. At 1 am the girls snuck out of their bedroom window to go with the boys...already having drunk alcohol.

None of this is an excuse for the horrible actions of the boys.

@10: "None of this is an excuse for the horrible actions of the boys."

Riiiiiiiiiiiiight. It's not an excuse, you just wanted to do your part to make the girls who were raped feel like shit.

Okay then.