"This e-mail, while the wording of it is, at best, unfortunate, if you read this e-mail and you also are aware of other e-mails that exist contemporaneous with these events, it's quite clear that no rape happened in that house," Cheshire said. "These boys were frustrated because they, as is already been reported, they thought these women had come and taken a bunch of money and started dancing and just decided to leave."
...."If you see this case with things the police have not released, you see this case in a different light than the prosecutor going out there and saying, 'they're guilty,'" Cheshire said. "Is it a horrible e-mail? Yes. Does it make the writer look good as a human being? Are there all kinds of moral and social issues that can be discussed about what went on that night? This e-mail does not in any way shape or form show that there was a violent sexual act that went on in that house. I would tell you that it in fact shows the opposite."
The affidavit contains the text of the e-mail which was written by lacrosse team player and sophomore Ryan McFadyen, who lived in the dorm room. He is player 41.
The affidavit states the players used phony names to shield their identities at the party and that it was player Dan Flannery, a team captain who lived at the house, who called the escort service and used an alias. The accuser says that of the three men who raped her was named "Adam" but other players kept calling him "Dan." Flannery, as well as the other two house residents, went in the night of the search warrant, voluntarily, without a lawyer, and gave statements.
I wrote here that in the search warrant for the house where the party occurred, the woman named the three players who attacked her but I could find no record of of a player with one of the names on this year's team. That name was "Adam." But if this site is correct, there is an Adam.
Some random thoughts from a defense perspective (which unfortunately has to be based on media accounts, googling and two search warrant affidavits rather than the actual police reports, transcripts of interviews, and results of investigation.)
Notice that the first affidavit names "Bret." That's an unusual spelling of the name. Clearly, that's the cop's spelling and not the accuser's, because there is a "Bret" on the team. So apparently, not all of them used fake names. Unless one of those she is accusing lied and said he was Bret when he wasn't. In which case, Bret is eliminated as a suspect.
There's also some timeline confirmation. The accuser arrived at the house at 11:30. The other dancer was already inside. They began to dance. After a few minutes, they felt threatened by the racial and sexual comments, left and got in a car outside. They both were coaxed to go back in and they did, but got separated.
Here's where the criminal accusations begin. The accuser says Matt and Adam pulled her in the bathroom. "Someone" closed the door and then Matt, Adam and Bret said she couldn't leave and raped her for 30 minutes. She also says they physically assaulted her by strangling her and it was during this physical assault that she clawed at her attacker to be able to breathe and her nails came off.
The first 911 call came at 12:53 am, from the other dancer who said at first she was driving by the house, then in the same call, said she was walking by the house with her black girlfirend. I say it was the other dancer because,
Police said they don't know who made the 911 call to report the racial slurs, and the complainant was gone when police arrived at the house. But Durham police spokeswoman Kammie Michael said Thursday that they are convinced the call was not made by the same woman who later said she was raped and sodomized by three men at the party.
[The text accompanying the audio of the tape also says it's not the accuser.] On the other hand, police did say that the other dancer made the second call, having picked up the accuser on the same street as the party house and taken her to Krogers.
The second call came at 1:22 am. The accuser told police the rape happened between midnight and 12:55 am. The police arrived at 12:55 in response to the first call but the place seemed deserted and neither woman was present.
One interpretation could be that the nails did not come off during the alleged rape but during a physical assault over the money.
Other details: The accuser said that $400 was missing from her purse. $160 was recovered in the house. The second search warrant seeks permission to search for $340 at the dorm room in $20 bills. (I think they can't add, that's $500.00) Nonetheless, only three $20s were found in the dorm room .
In short, it doesn't look like anything incriminating or confirming a rape was found in the dorm room or the vehicle.
The e-mail mentions Arch and Tack and asks if any besides them want to respond. Is this a reference to?
38 Breck Archer MIDFIELDER 6-0 190 Jr. Sea Cliff, N.Y. (Taft)
3 Chris Tkac DEFENSE 6-0 185 Fr. Gaithersburg, Md. (Landon)
To be continued.
