INC NEWS - Information on sexual assault at house on Buchanan (N&O, Chronicle and NBC-17; Herald site is down)

[John Schelp]

"Duke University is monitoring the situation and
cooperating with officials, as are the students." 
--John Burness, Duke's senior vice president for
public affairs and government relations (N&O, 3/24/06)

Cpl. Addison said police approached the lacross team
with the five-page search warrant on March 16, but all
of the members refused to cooperate with the
investigation. (Herald-Sun, 3/25/06) 

****

Dancer gives details of ordeal: A woman hired to dance
for the Duke lacrosse team describes a night of racial
slurs, growing fear and, finally, sexual violence
(by Samiha Khanna and Anne Blythe, N&O, 25 March 2006)

The woman who says she was raped last week by three
members of the Duke University lacrosse team thought
she would be dancing for five men at a bachelor party,
she said Friday. But when she arrived that night, she
found herself surrounded by more than 40.

Just moments after she and another exotic dancer
started to perform, she said, men in the house started
barking racial slurs. The two women, both black,
stopped dancing.

"We started to cry," she said. "We were so scared."

Forty-six members of the men's lacrosse team submitted
DNA samples Thursday in the unusual case. As of late
Friday, there had been no arrests. Duke officials
briefed university staff Friday on the allegations,
and authorities vowed to crack the team's wall of
solidarity.

"We're asking someone from the lacrosse team to step
forward," Durham police Cpl. David Addison said. "We
will be relentless in finding out who committed this
crime."

He emphasized the seriousness of the accusations --
first-degree rape, kidnapping, assault by
strangulation and robbery.

Details of the accusations were made public this week
in a warrant authorizing a search of the three-bedroom
rental house where the attack is alleged to have taken
place.

The accuser spoke Friday, struggling not to cry as she
recounted the events of the early hours of March 14 at
610 N. Buchanan Blvd., next to Duke's East Campus.

It is The News & Observer's policy not to identify the
victims of sex crimes.

The accuser had worked for an escort company for two
months, doing one-on-one dates about three times a
week.

"It wasn't the greatest job," she said, her voice
trailing off. But with two children, and a full class
load at N.C. Central University, it paid well and fit
her schedule.

This was the first time she had been hired to dance
provocatively for a group, she said. There was no
security to protect her, and as the men became
aggressive, the two women started to leave. After some
of the men apologized for the behavior, the women went
back inside, according to police. That's when the
woman was pulled into a bathroom and raped and
sodomized, police said.

She hesitated to tell police what happened, she said
Friday. She realized she had to, for her young
daughter and her father.

A hurt that would last

"My father came to see me in the hospital," she said.
"I knew if I didn't report it that he would have that
hurt forever, knowing that someone hurt his baby and
got away with it."

Jason Bissey, who was on his porch next door during
the party, saw the victim that night. He said Friday
that he wishes he had called police at the first sign
something was wrong.

He saw at least 30 men go into the white three-bedroom
house, which Duke officials say is rented by three
lacrosse team captains.

Bissey saw two women arrive and, after they were in
the house 20 minutes, come out. As they got into a
car, men shouted, Bissey said.

"Some of them were saying things like, 'I want my
money back,' " Bissey said.

He recalled the racially charged statements at least
one man was yelling at the victim.

"When I was outside, one guy yelled at her, '... Thank
your grandpa for my cotton shirt,' " Bissey said.

After a few minutes, everything seemed to calm down,
he said. One of the women headed back into the house,
saying she forgot her shoes.

Days later, Bissey learned one of the young women
reported being raped.

"If I had called in the beginning, maybe the cops
would have gotten there before this happened," he
said.

Bissey and other neighbors are accustomed to hearing
loud parties at the house. It's one of many rental
houses near the Duke campus where police stay busy,
breaking up rowdy parties and rounding up minors
suspected of underage drinking.

Last fall, residents were worried about more than
drunken antics and loud music. Many complained that
students disregarded their neighbors and police, and
were disrespectful when confronted.

Police have been called to the house at 610 N.
Buchanan Blvd. four times since September, according
to police records. The house is one of 15 properties
the university bought in February to address
neighborhood complaints. The university plans to sell
the dwellings to quieter homeowners who agree not to
rent them out.

After hearing about the alleged rape, residents in
neighborhoods around Duke sent e-mail to one another
and police, criticizing landlords for tolerating an
"Animal House" atmosphere.

Residents also questioned why police waited two days
to search the house after the rape was reported.

Addison, the police spokesman, said that between
receiving the call and searching the house, police
were interviewing the victim, residents of the house
and other witnesses. He also explained that one team
member was excluded from the DNA testing because he is
black and therefore doesn't match the description of
the suspects.

The tests are scheduled to be sent to the State Bureau
of Investigation in Raleigh for testing, and Durham
authorities said they are trying to have the process
expedited.

All that Duke officials can do, they say, is wait for
the investigation to be completed.

Art Chase, Duke sports information director, said
lacrosse coach Mike Pressler and athletics department
administrators had spoken with team captains about the
incident. The department was not conducting an
investigation of its own, Chase said.

"I think they'll let the judicial system run its
course," he said.

Chase said he was not sure of the occasion for the
party. Players did not return phone calls, and their
parents remained mum, as did Pressler. He and the team
were preparing Friday for today's home game against
Georgetown University.

Paul Haagen, chairman of Duke's Academic Council, was
in a faculty meeting about the incident.

'This is sad'

"There was a sense of, 'This is sad, and it's
terrible,' " Haagen said. "Beyond that, people don't
know what's going on."

Haagen, a law professor who specializes in sports law,
said studies show that violence against women is more
prevalent among male athletes than among male students
in general -- and higher still among such "helmet
sports" as football, hockey and lacrosse.

"These are sports of violence," he said. "This is
clearly a concern."

****

DPD DNA-tests lacrosse team in suspected rape
(Duke Chronicle, 24 March 2006)

Durham police DNA-tested 46 members of the Duke men's
lacrosse team Thursday afternoon in the suspected
gang-rape of a woman last week.

All but one member of the team was ordered to report
at 4 p.m. to the Durham police crime lab downtown. 

No charges were filed as of Friday afternoon,
according to a University official. 

Police also photographed and interviewed the 46
individuals. The one team member who was not required
to report to the police crime lab was a black male,
and the victim identified the suspects as white males.


The alleged incident occurred during a party March 13
at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd. The residence is shared by
three members of the Duke lacrosse team. 

Police think that three members were involved in the
offense, which is being investigated as First Degree
Forcible Rape, Robbery, Kidnapping, First Degree
Sexual Offense, Hate Crimes, Felony Strangulation and
Assault on a Female.

According to the warrant, which was issued March 16,
two women had made an appointment to dance for a group
of men at the house that evening. Once they started
dancing shortly after 11:30 p.m., the men became
excited and aggressive. The News and Observer reported
that alcohol was involved in the incident.

"The victim and her fellow dancer decided to leave
because they were concerned about their safety," the
warrant stated. After getting into their vehicle, one
of the suspects apologized and convinced the two to
come back inside, shortly after which the two women
were separated. 

Two males then pulled the victim into a bathroom as
three men sexually assaulted her for an approximate
30-minute time period, according to the warrant. The
woman left early March 14. 

The Chronicle does not identify victims of sex crimes.
The men are not being named because no charges have
been filed.

The University made a statement Friday morning,
confirming the testing and the legal order. "Duke
University is monitoring the situation and cooperating
with officials, as are the students," wrote John
Burness, senior vice president for public affairs and
government relations. 

Burness said the University was awaiting a report from
the police department before taking judicial action.

He said the team will continue to play their games as
scheduled. The lacrosse team will play Georgetown at
Duke 1 p.m. Saturday. 

Burness added that head coach Mike Pressler has had
conversations with the team. 

All players attended practice Friday afternoon, after
a two-day break. Pressler said the players were in
good spirits and the break was because of an emotional
loss to Cornell Tuesday. 

He said the guys were energetic and focussed at
practice Friday. 

"All our focus is on trying to beat the Hoyas now,"
Pressler said. He added that the team met Thursday for
their scouting meeting. "They are very mature young
men."

Burness said residents of the house will be allowed to
remain for now. Duke bought the Buchanan residence in
early March, along with 13 other properties off East
Campus.

****

Members Of Duke Lacrosse Team Tested In Suspected Rape

NBC-17, 24 March 2006

DURHAM, N.C. -- Police have taken DNA samples from 46
members of the Duke University lacrosse team trying to
find at least three men suspected of the rape and
beating of a woman hired to dance at a party.

A search warrant said the woman, who nearly was
strangled, was hired to dance March 13 at a
university-owned house where three members of the team
lived.

Duke spokesman John Burness said team members reported
to police Thursday to provide DNA samples and be
photographed.

"Duke University is monitoring the situation and
cooperating with officials, as are the students,''
Burness said. "Some folks from our athletic department
have talked at some length, and I think somebody from
our student affairs department may as well with the
individual students. They deny the allegations."

No charges have been filed in the case.

Attorney Bob Ekstrand, who is representing the
lacrosse players, declined to comment Friday.

Police Sgt. Mark Gottlieb said alcohol was involved in
the incident that began near midnight and continued
into early hours of the next day.

The search warrant said two women went to the house to
dance and the men became aggressive and the woman
left, but were asked to return by a player who
apologized. When they went back to the house, they
were separated and the victim was forced into a
bathroom and assaulted by three men. The victim called
police from a grocery store at 1:22 a.m. March 14.

The team will continue its schedule, said Duke
athletics director Joe Alleva.

"This is not the kind of thing that represents Duke
University in any way that is positive. But at the
same time, since we don't know what actually has
occurred other than this allegation that was made,
we're in this position of determining what next steps
to take," Burness said.

Burness said the university will take no action in the
case unless the police investigation warrants it.

"It's shocking that these guys who are peers -- Duke
students -- seemingly quality guys could do that,"
said Mickey Goetz, who lives next doo to the house
where the assault is alleged to have occurred. 

****