Durham, N.C.
In a case that has sparked daily protests and raised racial tensions at Duke University, two white lacrosse players were arrested this week and charged with raping a black stripper who performed at a team party. District Attorney Mike Nifong said a third student could also be charged. Defense lawyers argued that the case should have been dropped, because DNA tests at the scene turned up no evidence that any sex took place at the party last month. But Nifong said the alleged victim’s testimony was compelling and that authorities had physical evidence of a crime. Lawyers for the two defendants, sophomores Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann, said Nifong was pandering to local voters in an election year. “We are confident these young men will be found to be innocent,” said attorney Bill Cotter.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Proposed Trump-Putin talks in Budapest on holdSpeed Read Trump apparently has no concrete plans to meet with Putin for Ukraine peace talks
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
The WW2 ‘massacre’ dividing Senegal and FranceUnder the Radar A new investigation found the 1944 Thiaroye attack on ‘unarmed’ African soldiers was ‘premeditated’, and far deadlier than previously recorded
