Spring Break
Students respond to dismissal, tumultuous year
By: Chelsea Allison and Nate Freeman
Issue date: 4/12/07 Section: News
Last update: 4/12/07 at 6:16 AM EST
Last update: 4/12/07 at 6:16 AM EST
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North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper announced Wednesday that his office has dropped the remaining charges against David Evans, Trinity '06, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann, citing insufficient evidence against the former players and mishandling of the case by Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong.
Student leaders and other members of the student body responded to the announcement and considered the media maelstrom that descended upon the campus after the indictments.
"For a long time, everyone has been expecting that the charges would be dropped," said Duke Student Government President Elliott Wolf, a junior. "With the announcement from the attorney general that they were innocent, it rids the Duke and Durham community of any doubt."
Junior Christiane Regelbrugge, co-founder of Students for an Ethical Durham-which hosted a voter registration effort with the lacrosse team last fall-said the outcome vindicated their efforts to ensure that justice prevailed in Durham.
"We're thrilled that this day has finally come-we always knew it would-and that these boys can move on with their lives," she said. "Justice has finally been served, and that was always the goal with Students for an Ethical Durham-to make sure that officials elected in Durham were ethical and treated all citizens fairly."
In response to the lacrosse incident, DSG created the position of community liaison to foster a better relationship between Duke students and the community.
Outgoing community liaison Daniel Bowes, a senior, said he hopes the position will continue to benefit the community even as the charges were dropped.
"The lacrosse incident created a problem, and the community liaison is supposed to deal with that problem," Bowes said. "Community interaction is just as important today as it was yesterday. I'll be talking to individuals in the community, ensuring them that while the exoneration is great for Duke, it has no repercussions for the community liaison position."
Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 21
BS...A
posted 4/12/07 @ 8:54 AM EST
I assume that when the BSA stated that the Lax incident "serves as a lesson that issues of prejudice and inequality still exist within our nation today" they were referring to how unfairly Evans, Finnerty, and Seligman were treated. (Continued…)
Anonymous
posted 4/12/07 @ 9:10 AM EST
"We will never know what really happened on the night of March 13" Is BSA serious? Yes, the lacrosse team acted very inappropriately with some using racial slurs at the party and they should have been criticized for it. (Continued…)
DukeParent55
posted 4/12/07 @ 9:29 AM EST
I assume the BSA was also referring to the comment of the other stripper, Kim, who provoked the racial insults by referring the lacrosse players as "little-dicked white boys". (Continued…)
gb
posted 4/12/07 @ 9:34 AM EST
I suspect it might help heal campus divisions if the BSA, rather than maintaining that "We will never know what really happened on the night of March 13", and instead of expressing measured "hope" that justice has been served, were able to unequivocally recognize that the lax players are innocent. (Continued…)
Black Student Alliance
posted 4/12/07 @ 9:40 AM EST
My classmates, your elevator is not stopping on every floor. How can you in one breath say "we will never know what really happened on the night of March 13," and in another breath wonder why you are not looked upon with respect. (Continued…)
Never Know?
posted 4/12/07 @ 10:43 AM EST
The BSA reaction was pathetic.
They are just a bunch of fools who believe in "Black Power" (with a clenched fist held high) at the expense of greater society. (Continued…)
Mike lee
posted 4/12/07 @ 11:26 AM EST
And through it all (to this very moment!!) the NC NAACP still has its famous talking points listed on its website.
They include this gem-
"The three defendants they have two mountains to climb. (Continued…)
Dorothy Cowart
posted 4/12/07 @ 11:37 AM EST
Just curious, what did reps of the White Student Alliance have to say?
alum'03
posted 4/12/07 @ 11:41 AM EST
Not to sound like whitey here, but I hope that after this verdict, as the BSA has said, "the community can move forward as a campus united in making Duke a place of safety, acceptance and respect for all of its members. (Continued…)
Mike Lee
posted 4/12/07 @ 11:48 AM EST
And through it all (to this very moment!!) the NC NAACP still has its famous talking points listed on its website.
They include this gem-
"The three defendants they have two mountains to climb. (Continued…)
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