| The mea cuplas after April 11, 2007; lacking in something...? | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Feb 28 2010, 11:10 PM (230 Views) | |
| Quasimodo | Feb 28 2010, 11:10 PM Post #1 |
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http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=25937&SPID=2027&DB_OEM_ID=4200&ATCLID=860312 Joe Alleva Statement On Duke Men's Lacrosse 04/11/2007 - Duke Sports Information “We are pleased that a decision was made to drop all remaining charges in this case. This was the result we believed would, and should occur. From the beginning, we stressed that this case needed to be evaluated in the legal system, thus allowing for the truth to come out. The Evans, Finnerty and Seligmann families have been through a trying year. I cannot imagine what they have experienced and truly hope that they understand the depth of our concern throughout this whole ordeal. As a parent of three children myself, my sincere regrets go out to the Evans, Finnerty and Seligmann families for all of the anxiety and pain they have endured since last March. Everyone associated with the team has dealt with the unfairness of negative public scrutiny regarding their character and their values. Neither should have been questioned. [No mention of the canceling of the season?] “I am extremely proud of the way the members of our lacrosse program handled the multitude of distractions – many of them unwarranted – with dignity and class for the past 13 months. As a program and athletic department, we’ve moved forward at Duke. [No mention that this involved the firing of a coach, whose fitness for his position should never have been questioned. (And it was STILL to be questioned by Duke spokeman Burness in the coming weeks.) So much for sincerity...] Under our first-year coach John Danowksi, we’ve got an exciting, nationally ranked team back on the field this season. Off the field, our players have given back to the Durham community and excelled in the classroom. Given the circumstances under which they’ve had to compete, our lacrosse team has represented the principles that this athletic department strives for every day, culminating in excellence.” [No room for a word of OUTRAGE at a useless and criminal frame-up attempt? Maybe next time? ] |
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| Quasimodo | Feb 28 2010, 11:13 PM Post #2 |
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http://www.dukenews.duke.edu/2007/04/rhb_agdecision.html Statement from Duke President Richard H. Brodhead About the Attorney General Dropping Charges in Lacrosse Case The following statement was issued by Duke President Richard H. Brodhead Wednesday afternoon Wednesday, April 11, 2007 Durham, NC -- I join with everyone who cares about justice [a bit late . . .] in welcoming the North Carolina State Attorney General’s announcement that the remaining charges have been dropped against David Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann. This announcement comes at the end of an extraordinarily painful year for the young men and their families. They have carried themselves with dignity through an ordeal of deep unfairness. [Couldn't he have waited a little longer to characterize the process as "an ordeal of deep unfairness" (insert sarcasm smiley) When did he come to realize this was an ordeal of deep unfairness? On April 11, or before? ] Let’s be clear about what was said today. The Attorney General did not dismiss the allegations on narrow, equivocal or legalistic ground. He determined our students to be innocent of the charges and said they were “the tragic result of a rush to accuse.” In short, he used the strongest language of vindication. From the outset, I have been careful to note that these students were entitled to the presumption of innocence and I looked to the legal system to determine the merit of the charges. [Oxymoron. You can't say you presume someone is innocent but you look to the legal system to determine if they are innocent or not. If Brodhead had said instead, that he looked to the state to try and prove its ludicrous allegations--and then lambasted them when they failed to be able to do so, and called for an investigation of how this happened--then his actions might have matched these fine words. He would also have demonstrated that he understood the constitution.] Now, finally, that process has given us a decision based on a thorough and objective review of the evidence. This is what we have all needed from the start. [And you had that when the DNA test results became public. Did the President of Duke not understand what DNA means?] I trust the State Bar’s review will be equally thorough so that we can understand the District Attorney’s conduct in this case. As for Duke, while not reliving the past year, we won’t be afraid to go back and learn what we can from this difficult experience. [So where are all the committees examining what went on? The lacrosse team's conduct had to be studied by an ad hoc committee--how about the conduct of the faculty? The Admin? The BOT?] During the past year, the world has known these young men, their teammates and a great university largely through the filter of unproven allegations. [Again, what took you so long to say this? Was this something you just suddenly realized?] I trust that today’s decision will begin a new day for all involved. |
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| Quasimodo | Feb 28 2010, 11:17 PM Post #3 |
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http://www.dukenews.duke.edu/2007/04/steel_letter.html Letter from Robert K. Steel, Chair of the Duke Trustees, to the Duke Community The following letter was sent to members of the Duke community Wednesday night Wednesday, April 11, 2007 Durham, NC -- Dear Members of the Duke University Community, I write to you on behalf of the Trustees of Duke University. [I wish the Trustees had voices of their own and were able to speak. Maybe they are all just potted plants; they certainly said nothing when Scottsboro II was being foisted on their own students at their own university. ] Today the North Carolina State Attorney General announced that all remaining charges against David Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann have been dropped and should never have been brought. This announcement explicitly and unequivocally establishes the innocence of David, Collin and Reade, who with their families have suffered an unimaginable year of accusation and public scrutiny. They deserve our respect for the honorable way they have conducted themselves during this long legal ordeal that ends with their exoneration. [Now that I know what Steel said in private, why do I find the above to be less than credible? But I guess he figured saying something like this now was "best for Duke"? ] The Attorney General determined that there was no credible evidence to support the charges that were brought, with so many statements of certainty, by the Durham District Attorney last spring. Many have suffered from his actions, these three students and their families most of all. The Attorney General’s investigation places responsibility for this miscarriage of justice with the District Attorney, [and nobody else?] and we now look to the proceedings of the State Bar to call him to account before his peers. Much as we wish that these three young men, their teammates and their families – and indeed the whole community of people who love Duke – could have been spared the agony of the past year, we believe that it was essential for the University to defer to the criminal justice system. As imperfect and flawed as it may be, it is that process that brings us today to this resolution. [We know what you thought was "best for Duke". . . ] Throughout the past year President Richard Brodhead consulted regularly with the Trustees and has had our continuing support. He made considered and thoughtful decisions in a volatile and uncertain situation. Each step of the way, the board agreed with the principles that he established and the actions he took. [Note taken.] As we look back – and with the benefit of what we now know – there is no question that there are some things that might have been done differently. However, anyone critical of President Brodhead should be similarly critical of the entire board. [I concur 100%.] In closing, we express our relief for today’s outcome and recognize the character that our three students, their teammates and all of their families have shown over the past year. Furthermore, we hope that the resolution of this unfair, divisive and painful episode can serve to unite us all. There is much to learn from the events that we have lived through, and we intend to put this learning to use. Duke is a great university that steps up to challenges and opportunities, and together we will use this moment to make our community stronger. [That's why we are spending millions to fend off depositions. . . ] |
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| Quasimodo | Feb 28 2010, 11:19 PM Post #4 |
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[Burness didn't comment until April 27, with the release of the AG's summary. Odd that he waited so long?] Statement by John F. Burness on Summary of Conclusions by N.C. Attorney General's Office Friday, April 27, 2007 Durham, NC -- “Attorney General Cooper’s Summary of Conclusions that was released today documents the absence of any credible evidence that would justify any conclusion in this case other than the one Mr. Cooper announced a few weeks ago -- that David Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann are innocent of all charges brought against them last spring by District Attorney Nifong. We welcome this report as we welcomed the Attorney General’s announcement on April 11. “We now await the N.C. State Bar’s review of the charges against Mr. Nifong for his conduct in this case.” [That's it. No outrage; no expression of appreciation for the way the accused handled themselves; no hint that what they went through was unjust; just a bald statement of the fact that the AG's summary said they were innocent, and that "We welcome this report..."] |
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| Payback | Feb 28 2010, 11:28 PM Post #5 |
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Quasi, after reading this I took down the 1984 book in which I indicted Brodhead for "closing his eyes to the agony" Melville suffered. The footnote I put in about Brodhead is the only such footnote in the book. The inhumanity of his literary criticism terrified me, in the late 70s and early 80s, because it was the most glaring example of an all too common attitude toward dead writers that critics like Brodhead were making their livings from. The inhumanity he displayed toward the lacrosse players and Pressler and the families of the players and the coach still terrifies me but did not surprise me at all. I tell you, Quasi, James Van de Velde must feel the way I do, vindicated at last, at horrific cost. |
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7:14 PM Jul 10