Recently, word about the notorious Steubenville case has been brought up, as the trial has just passed this last weekend. In the conclusion to the trial Trent Mays, 17, and Ma'lik Richmond, 16 were found guilty and incarcerated.
In August of 2012, Steubenville, Ohio football players Mays and Richmond were accused of raping an intoxicated 16 year-old girl and broadcasting pictures and videos of the act on social media. Richmond was only charged of the rape, while Mays was charged with disseminating a nude photo of a minor as well.
Shockingly, there has recently been uproar of complaints from people all over social media about the penalties these boys are facing. The boys will be facing a minimum of one year in jail (but the former could be detained until age 24 and the latter until 21), but some people strongly feel that is not enough.
Freshman Garrett Spivey commented on the time they should be imprisoned saying, “I think 10-15 years is good because they obviously need a good minute in there because rape is a terrible thing, but they were also young and by the time they get out, I'm sure won't be raping anyone else because they'll be afraid of going back to jail. If they were older, I'd probably say 20-25 years, but they're young and they need a chance to turn their lives around.”
On the other hand, some don't look at it through both points of view and say things such as “they deserve life, they're cruel, they should never see daylight again, etc.” or even go as far as to say that they deserve the death penalty.
Also, to outrage the public even more, it has been assumed that most of the reporting done on this topic has been “sympathetic” and “apologetic”. Some say biased is the right word for it. One much targeted source is CNN, since their reporters stressed how sad they are that the football players' futures are gone, and they are sorry about the fact that they are now registered sex offenders.
When asked about her thoughts on the trial, a very angry sophomore Olivia Townsend said, “Well I don't know much about it but if it's clear and simple then I think it's absolutely ridiculous that this girl was put through the trauma of being raped. She was brave to tell her story to the court and the world and it's a shame that CNN feels sympathy for two rapists who willingly put their future on the line raping a young woman. She's going to spend the rest of her life insecure and broken to some extent to no fault of her own, and they have the audacity to feel bad for the perpetrators? This is a prime example of why victims don't confide that they have been raped, because even the successful, handsome, and talented are capable of rape.”
Two other arrests were also made regarding the situation. Two minor females ages 15 and 16 have been arrested for cyberbullying the rape victim on Facebook and Twitter, and will be tried soon.
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