Ohio AG: new rape-case charges can help community

0

STEUBENVILLE, Ohio (AP) — Long-anticipated chargesagainst adults implicated in the aftermath
of a 16-year-old girl’s rapeoffer the community a chance to begin putting the case behind it,according
to Ohio’s attorney general.A grand jury on Mondaycharged a school superintendent and three others with
lying or failingto report possible child abuse after an investigation prompted by therape of the West
Virginia girl by two high school football players."Thiscommunity is rectifying the problem. This
community is taking charge.This community is fixing things. This community is holding
peopleaccountable," Attorney General Mike DeWine said Monday. "That’s whatthis grand jury
did."The investigation included crimes committedin connection with the case against two members of
the celebratedSteubenville High School football team as well as a separate allegedrape that happened in
April 2012, four months before the assault thatdrew nationwide attention over allegations that
prosecutors should havecharged more players.Hacker activists helped propel coverage ofthe rape case and
press allegations of a cover-up, including repostingof a 12-minute Internet video made within hours of
the attacks in which aformer Steubenville student joked about the victim.DeWineconvened the grand jury
to look into the behavior of schooladministrators and other adults in the community after the two
playerswere convicted last March. Under the law, educators are required toreport allegations of child
abuse.Two people had already beencharged before Steubenville Superintendent Mike McVey, strength
coachSeth Fluharty, volunteer football coach Matthew Belardine and elementaryschool principal Lynnett
Gorman were charged Monday.McVey’scharges include felony counts of obstructing justice and tampering
withevidence and a misdemeanor charge alleging he made a false statement inApril 2012.McVey’s attorney
didn’t return messages.Belardine,whose house authorities said was the scene of the underage
drinkingparty that preceded the rape last summer, faces several misdemeanorcharges, including making a
false statement and contributing to underagealcohol consumption. Belardine will plead not guilty, said
Columbusattorney Brian Duncan.Fluharty was charged with failing to reportpossible child abuse in August
2012. Columbus attorney Tom Tyack saidhe had been contacted to represent Fluharty but could not
comment.Gormanis charged with failing to report possible child abuse in April 2012.Her attorney, Stephen
LaMatrice, said she will plead not guilty and thecharge isn’t connected to the football players’ case,
but declined toelaborate.State law in Ohio requires a lengthy list of public andprivate workers —
including school administrators, teachers andemployees — to immediately report suspected cases of abuse
or neglect."Ifyou’re covered, you have to know what the law says and do what itsays," said
Hollie Reedy, chief legal counsel for the Ohio School BoardsAssociation.DeWine announced the grand
jury’s creation March 17,the day a judge convicted Ma’Lik Richmond and Trent Mays of
digitallypenetrating the West Virginia girl after an alcohol-fueled party thatfollowed a team
scrimmage.The grand jury earlier charged theSteubenville schools’ information technology director with
tamperingwith evidence, obstructing justice, obstructing official business andperjury. The panel also
indicted that man’s daughter on theft andreceiving stolen property charges unrelated to the rape case.
Bothpleaded not guilty.The case has long been marked by allegationsthat more football players should
have been charged and that police andprosecutors tried to cover up aspects of the case early on.
Authoritiescounter that the two teens were arrested and charged within days of theattack.DeWine said he
believes the grand jury’s work is done,barring any new evidence, and acknowledged people may wonder why
stillothers weren’t charged."It’s not necessarily a crime to be insensitive or to be mean-spirited,
or just to be stupid," DeWine said.BigRed football is a big deal in the economically depressed city
of about18,000, a former steel town that shed thousands of jobs in past decades.DerekSmith, 47, whose
son is a fifth grade student at the school overlookingthe stadium home of the football team, said he was
upset that schoolleaders might have been involved."Of course, it’s alwaysdisturbing when you find
out that the people that are in charge of yourkids at school have been charged with this kind of
thing," he said.Richmond,17, was convicted of rape and sentenced to a year in the juvenileprison
system. Mays, also 17, was convicted of rape and of using hisphone to take a picture of the girl naked
and sentenced to two years injuvenile detention.___Associated Press writers KanteleFranko, Mitch Stacy
and Andrew Welsh-Huggins in Columbus, Ohio, and JohnSeewer in Toledo contributed to this
report.Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rightsreserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten orredistributed.

No posts to display