Crime at Duke

[segundo]

You will make a great lawyer with that attitude. Just because a response is not illegal doesn't mean that it is right. Are you so myopic that you can't differentiate between what is legally compelled of Duke versus what they ought to do?

Thanks for the compliment!

So what do you think Duke should have done?  Expelled the students for not talking?  Killed them?  What if it turns out the allegations are false? 
As someone mentioned before, Duke is not the judge and jury here.  They have done all they could do both reasonbly and legally. 

Yes, Duke should have killed them. Let's end on that highnote.

[SplitFinger]

As a Duke alum, and from having discussed this at some length with attorneys who are also Duke alums, the general consensus is that there are a lot of things about this case that don't add up.  The fact that none of the players' attorneys challenged the terms of the warrant directing them to give a DNA sample suggests that the players may well be telling the truth when they claim that the DNA tests will exonerate them.  I would caution all of you from jumping to conclusions based on the publicity that this case has generated.

And speaking of the publicity, someone wondered why this case has generated so much.  Well, that's pretty easy to answer:  the DA, Nifong, was recently appointed to his post and faces a difficult primary challenge in the upcoming election, against the woman who prosecuted the Mike Peterson case and who most people feel should have gotten the job when the previous DA stepped down.  And if you've ever lived in the Triangle, you won't be surprised to hear that Nifong is a double graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill (undergrad and law), which certainly helps explain why he is so quick to do what he can to give Duke a black eye out of this entire incident.

Now, the players may be guilty as sin, but I would say that there's also a decent chance that those of you who have tried and convicted them and the university based on the sensationalistic accounts you've read in the press may be totally off base.

[conoroberst]

Wanted to bump the duke alumn's post.  Also wanted to say that anyone who thinks athletes are put to the same set of rules as normal students are totally naive.

[ty1228]

What does this have to do with Duke's unwillingness to compel it's students to cooperate with a serious investigation of an alleged indicent that occured on Duke property? - quote


     I think it is important to remember that compelling or forcing people to provide testimony often produces false confessions and inaccurate testimony.  Duke should refrain from such action as it could lead to individuals providing misleading or false information in order to remain in school.  I believe that Duke is quite accepting of minority students.  Although it is unfortunate that racial issues exist in this case, it is important to remember that the lacross team is not representative of the entire student body.  Furthermore, it is certainly not representative of the attitudes of the administration which stated that the acts in question are deplorable if they indeed occured.   

[conoroberst]

As a former student athlete i think the actual ivy league and other schools where sports are a virtual non-factor may be the only schools that you're talking about.  Any team with a D-1 football program caters to athletes.  I played in the south so I cant speak from experience about northern schools.  Two of the most prestigious schools in Texas; Rice and Trinity (d1 and d3) cater to athletes.  Its not new and its really not that big of a deal.

[conoroberst]

First of all, wow and bravo to being up so early.  Secondly, you're probably right about me understimating the number of schools where sports are right.  I do question however that the difference in socializing and sports is part of this equation.

How many other people with a 3.78 gpa in high school and an sat of around 1300 do you know who got several calls and letters from Harvard?  (this was before they changed the sat, when it was on the 1600 scale)

I wont say anymore though, except for youre right again, i need to go through and read the other posts in this thread.  Its my weekend to make breakfast in bed though and the waffles are calling so it will be a while.

[jwilcox1024]

If this event occurred, it was not at an event anyway associated with the university.

It involved only Duke students and the alleged event happened ON Duke property in a house OWNED by Duke.

Can you provide a cite for your claims it happened in a Duke-owned property? Quoting from the story Lily linked to:

The rape took place at a Durham house leased by three of the captains

The house was referred to as 'off-campus' on SportsCenter last night as well. This has gave me an opposite impression of the captain's living situation from the one you described above.

Also, if the house in question is not tied to Duke in any way, would that change your impression of how Duke should handle the situation?

[conoroberst]

From what ive read about the house, sources being espn, cnnsi and cnn, the house was recently purchased by Duke.  The house was a source for several complaints with the police over the past few years.  Apparently its just off campus and has always housed students, but wasnt owned or operated by Duke.

In response to several complaints, Duke bought the house (and others that were similar) earlier this year.  Even though Duke bought the house, 3 of the lax players had already signed their lease through the end of the year so they were allowed to continue to rent until that was up.  Since this happened the students were able to leave the house and it has since become Duke property.

[remiz22]

If this event occurred, it was not at an event anyway associated with the university.

It involved only Duke students and the alleged event happened ON Duke property in a house OWNED by Duke.

Can you provide a cite for your claims it happened in a Duke-owned property? Quoting from the story Lily linked to:

The rape took place at a Durham house leased by three of the captains

The house was referred to as 'off-campus' on SportsCenter last night as well. This has gave me an opposite impression of the captain's living situation from the one you described above.

Also, if the house in question is not tied to Duke in any way, would that change your impression of how Duke should handle the situation?

Good question. If the house had not been owned by Duke (which it was), then my feelings might be different.

[mccapj2]

Duke purchased a group of houses in order to alleviate the tensions and make an attempt to integrate the university with the community.  Great plan, Duke.