May 2, 2024 • 28 mins
Peel back the layers of a night that spiraled into a national debate on race, privilege, and the very fabric of elite academic institutions. Explore the critical moments and decisions that propelled Duke University into the eye of a storm, scrutinizing the roles played by the media, the university, and the justice system. As accusations fly and a community finds itself divided, we're left to ponder the price of prejudice and the quest for truth in the complex arena of collegiate sports.
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
Welcome back to Playing dirty sports scandals. I'm Jay Harris,
your host. You're Barista, your unflinching guide through the scandalous
bowels of the sports world. Over the past twenty years
of my career as a journalist and sportscaster, I've hosted
ESPN shows from Sports Center to Outside the Lines. But
I'm playing dirty. There is no line. So if you're
feeling thirsty for a juicy scandal, then you've come to
(00:31):
the right tap, grab a cup, and gulp something that
tastes good and sits well before we dive in. Because
today's tale is darker than a prune and cherry juice blend,
and like that combo is impossible to stomach. Okay, I
(00:54):
don't know about you, but my favorite juicing cup is
a blue yetti cooler. You know, it's functional and classy.
But there weren't any of these cool cups being passed
around March thirteen, two thousand and six, at a Duke
University party. No way, the Duke lacrosse team hosting this
ill fated rager were slurping from those ubiquitous plastic red
(01:15):
cups that make the rounds on every college campus. And
you better believe that they weren't filled with juice. Alcohol
was flowing freely, and the exuberant young athletes were getting wilder.
It didn't matter that these guys were among the most
privileged in the United States. College kids from all walks
of life of a tendency toward rowdiness. Duke's undergraduate admissions
(01:38):
are among the most selective in the country, with an
overall acceptance rate of just six point two percent for
the class of twenty twenty six. The school has turned
out fifteen Nobel Laureates, three Touring Award winners, fifty Rhodes Scholars,
and fourteen Living Billionnaires. The students who attend Duke tend
to come from money or believe they're going to make
(01:59):
big bucks after graduation to efficiently pay off their student debt.
Since annual tuition exceeds sixty six thousand dollars, so Duke's
student body should arguably be exceptional. And the words of
American political activists Noam Chomsky, the more privilege you have,
the more opportunity you have, the more opportunity you have,
(02:19):
the more responsibility you have. Chomsky's words are spot on,
and Duke's stats are undeniably impressive, but I don't think
there's any doubt that college kids everywhere tear it up
on campus every now and then. We expect teenagers to
be naughty and push the boundaries sometimes, what we don't
expect as a society is for a group of duke
lacrosse team players who embody privilege to flush all sense
(02:43):
and morality down the toilet along with their wretched up
party punch. But that's what a woman named Crystal Mangum
alleged happened on March thirteenth, two thousand and six. Crystal
had been hired to perform at a duke lacrosse team's party,
and she gave police a harrowing account of what went
on that night. She accused three members of the lacrosse
(03:07):
team of heinous crimes of violence, claiming that she had
been raped, beaten, and choked, all allegedly unfolding in the
confines of a bathroom in a private off campus house.
And Crystal's allegation wasn't just about the violence. It was
steeped in a narrative of race and privilege. Here were affluent,
white male athletes from a highly respected university accused of
(03:30):
brutalizing a black woman, a stripper who stood on the
opposite end of the social hierarchy. Police sprang into action,
recognizing the seriousness of Crystal's allegation and understanding the shockwaves
her words would produce across Durham, North Carolina, where Duke
University is located, as well as the country at large.
(03:51):
Those shockwaves came hard and fast, hitting the city of
Durham first. Duke is the gem of Durham, which provides
a picturesque backdrop for its below university. It's a place
where the old and the new coalesce, creating an environment
that's as intellectually stimulating as it is charming. You can
really feel the history as you walk around Durham, and
(04:11):
certainly as you meander through the Duke University campus. But
as we know, there are many painful chapters in history,
and some of Duke's darker pages were brought to the
forefront along with Crystal's allegations against the university's lacrosse team.
For example, it wasn't until nineteen sixty one, amidst a
civil rights movement, that Duke opened its doors to African
(04:34):
American students, finally reflecting a pivotal shift in its approach
to diversity and inclusion. To put that in perspective, Harvard
University welcomed its first black undergraduate student in eighteen forty seven,
one one hundred and fourteen years earlier. Any way you
slice that limit is sour. The integration of black students
(04:55):
into Duke University was not nearly as fast as it
should have been, and the athletic fields at Duke acclimated
slowly too, increasing team diversity across a series of pioneering moments.
Ernie Jackson and Clarence Newsom, in nineteen seventy two, stepped
onto the football field as the university's first black scholarship players,
(05:16):
rewriting the playbook on diversity in college sports, and then
in nineteen seventy five, Chuck Sherwood sprinted onto the lacrosse field,
not only just as a player, but as a trailblazer,
being the first African American to join Duke's lacrosse team.
Sports at Duke are more than just historical notations in games, though.
(05:37):
They're a unifying thread that weaves through the campus's social fabric.
While the university boasts numerous athletic teams, it's the Blue
Devils men's basketball team that often steals the spotlight. Their
consistent prowess on the court is not just a matter
of pride, but a legacy of genuine triumphs. The team's
accomplishments are legendary, with five NCAA championships to their name
(06:01):
nineteen ninety one, nineteen ninety two, two thousand and one,
twenty ten, and twenty fifteen. They've also made sixteen Final
Four appearances, a testament to their enduring excellence. This story
basketball program, under the guidance of then coach Mike Krzyzewski,
known as Coach K, has become a powerhouse in college sports,
(06:23):
producing numerous NBA stars. The team's success on the court
has not only brought fame to Duke University, but has
also become a rallying point for students and alumni alike,
embodying the spirit of determination and excellence Duke represents. But
while Duke's basketball team often hogs the limelight, another sports
team at the university has carved out its own impressive niche.
(06:47):
The Duke Blue Devil's men's lacrosse team, first fielded in
nineteen thirty eight, has grown to become a formidable force
in college lacrosse. Over the years, this team has displayed
remarkable skill and tenacity on the fielding a reputation as
a top contender in the NCUBA lacrosse landscape. Before scandal
started to unravel from the ill fated party on March thirteen,
(07:08):
two thousand and six, The team had a significant track
record of achievement under then had coach Mike Presler, who
was hired in nineteen ninety one. They made their first
nc DOUBLEA tournament appearance shortly after coach Presler arrived and
had their first tournament win in nineteen ninety four. The
Duke Blue Devils men's lacrosse team won its first ACC
(07:29):
or Atlantic Coast Conference tournament the following year and even
advanced to the final four two years later. The team
continued to perform, winning consecutive acc tournaments in two thousand
and one and two thousand and two. All of Duke's
sports teams embodied the university's commitment to excellence, and coach
Mike Presler's men's lacrosse team was no exception, well until
(07:51):
two thousand and six, anyway, when their reputation went into
free fall because of what happened after a night of
college partying. You see, the young athletes were in celebration mode,
riding the high of a recent win against Loyola. Three
of the four captains of the lacrosse team decided to
host a party with a risky element at their off
(08:14):
campus house. So they pointed up eight hundred dollars to
hire two exotic dancers for their bash. This decision was
the beginning of a scandalous saga that would captivate the
nation and forever alter the lives of everyone involved. The
night didn't go as the lacrosse team had imagined from
the start. After an afternoon and evening of half hearted
(08:36):
drinking games like beer pong, the players were sprawled on
the floor or sitting in a circle of couches that
they'd arranged around a makeshift stage for the exotic dancers
they'd hired. Basically, their idea was that the women would
dance on a ratty tan carpet in the center of
the sofas. Dave Evans told his teammates that he and
the other team captains had requested white dancers, but a
(08:58):
black woman named Christo Mangam and an Hispanic woman named
Kim Roberts showed up. By all accounts, none of the
players cared about the race of the dancers who had
turned up, but they were all fairly taken aback by
the state of the entertainers. The stripper named Cristal appeared
to be so intoxicated that she had trouble standing up,
let alone dancing. The women groped each other unenthusiastically, with
(09:20):
Kim doing her best to support Crystal simultaneously. Years later,
Reed Seligman would tell Newsweek that anyone watching the actual
night unfold would have been bored to tears. At the time,
Reid remembered, we didn't know how to react. It was disgusting.
I was very uncomfortable, and I wasn't the only one. Indeed,
(09:42):
in a photo taken by one of the other players,
Reid appears to be physically recoiling as he watches the dancers.
The other players who were captured in that photograph seem
indifferent to Crysteal and Kim. They were mostly chatting with
one another and sipping from their plastic cups while the
two strippers groped each other off courtly. The performance by
(10:02):
Crystal and Kim was a total bust and lasted all
of five minutes, one of the players apparently inquired if
Crystal and Kim had any sex toys on them to
liven up their performance. Kim allegedly retorted by asking if
the player's penis was too small, and in response, the
crude player then supposedly brandished a broomstick and said use this.
(10:23):
The brandishing of the broom upset both Crystal and Kim,
who fled and locked themselves in the bathroom together. At
this point, the players just wanted the disastrous party to end,
so one of the co captains slipped one hundred dollars
under the bathroom door in an effort to get the
women to come out and go away. The escorts emerged,
(10:43):
but Crystal, partially undressed and screaming, began wandering around the yard.
From this point of the night, Crystal alleges that she
was forced back into the bathroom and physically assaulted. The
players alleged that both women drove off at this point
without re entering the proper, with Kim behind the wheel
of the car and Crystal slumped in the passenger seat
(11:09):
as dawn broke. On March fourteenth, two thousand and six,
the players of Duke's lacrosse team were probably sleeping off
the excesses and headaches of the night before, totally unaware
that Crystal Mangam, one of the lackluster dancers they briefly
engaged with just hours earlier, was telling the Durham police
that she'd been violently assaulted. Crystal claimed that three members
(11:32):
of the lacrosse team later identified as David Evans, Reed Seligman,
and Colin Finndy, had brutally beaten, raped, and choked her
in a bathroom while the rest of the team was
partying in the house. According to NBC's report on March
twenty nine, two thousand and six, court documents reviewed by
local paper The News and Observer had specifically recorded when
(11:55):
Crystal Mangam had another dancer, Kim Roberts, began their routines,
one of the men watching held up a broomstick and
threatened to sexually assault the women. They left, but were
followed out by a man who persuaded them to return.
That's when three men pushed Crystal into a bathroom and
began the assault, which she said lasted for thirty minutes.
(12:17):
Crystal's account was extremely distressing, and Mike Nifong, the Durham
County District attorney who had worked in the DA's office
for thirty years, took up her case against the Duke
Lacrosse Players with a fervor. In fact, Niphong was directly
involved very early in the case and made statements to
the press many many times. His level of early involvement
(12:39):
was unprecedented. Oddly, Mike Knipfhong seemed utterly unconcerned with the
rules that prohibit prosecutors from making public statements that might
prejudice a future jury. And if he'd had a sip
of clean green protein juice and cleared his head, Niphong
might have realized that a closer examination of the facts
before speaking to the press us would have been prudent.
(13:01):
After all, what did he really know in those first
days of the scandal unraveling well, DA Mike Nifong had
an unsubstantiated timeline of events for starters. The exotic dancers
Crystal Mangum and Kim Roberts were set to begin performing
for the Duke Lacrosse Players around midnight. We know that
Crystal and Kim left the party around one am, which
(13:24):
means that they weren't at the bash very long maybe
in our tops, and we know that from there, Crystal's
night became increasingly bizarre and contentious. The other stripper, Kim,
fought with Crystal after the party and later told authorities
that she had become so upset driving that she'd pulled
into a Kroger's supermarket parking lot and tried to kick
(13:45):
Crystal out of her car. When Crystal refused to vacate
the vehicle, Kim Roberts went into the Kroger store and
told the female security guard that Christel was refusing to
leave her car, So the guard walked outside to the
car and asked Crystal to leave, but still Crystal remained
in the vehicle. At one twenty two am, the Kroger
guard called nine to one one to report that Crystal
(14:07):
Mangum was refusing to leave a vehicle that did not
belong to her. When the police arrived in the wee
hours of the morning around two am, by now, they
also spoke with Crystal and tried to get her out
of Kim's car. Again, Crystal adamantly refused, and at this
point the police determined that she was having some sort
of mental health crisis. So convinced of this, were the police,
(14:31):
who are trained to assess these types of situations, that
they temporarily committed Crystal for his safety and the safety
of others. This means that the police took Crystal into
custody for the purpose of initiating an emergency short term
psychiatric hold. It was only at this fraught point that
Crystal told authorities that she had been raped by three
(14:52):
white boys at a party. In line with protocol, Crystal
was promptly sent to Duke University Medical Center, where she
was examined. There didn't it seemed to be any injuries
consistent with her having been violently raped and beaten, though
a rape kit was collected by the medical professionals. Now,
for those of you who don't know what a rape
kit is, it consists of samples or swabs collected from
(15:14):
a rape victim to test for DNA. The medical experts
also take photos of the patient's body to document any
injuries and take samples of any bodily fluids that might
be present on or inside the body. While this is
hardly an easy process for people who have been raped
to go through, it is vitally important if they hope
(15:34):
to realize justice. The rape kit process collects any DNA
evidence that may have been left behind by the offender,
and if DNA is recovered, then the police will submit
that DNA to the crime lab and wait for samples
of suspect DNA to compare the two and see if
they match. Since Crystal had various swabs and samples taken
(15:56):
from her body for the rape kit, it was now
time for the police to collect DNA from their suspects.
A judge ordered all forty six white lacrosse players to
provide DNA samples so they could be compared with the
DNA found on Crystal's body. The players gave DNA samples
without protest, seemingly keen to clear themselves quickly of any wrongdoing.
(16:17):
They also offered to take polygraph tests, but the police declined.
And here is where things start to get really weird,
really fast. Police publicized that there had been a rape
at the house and asked the public for information, and
when they showed photos of possible rape suspects to Crystal Mangum,
(16:38):
they only showed her photos of duke lacrosse players. Now,
this is not how photo lineups, as they are called,
are supposed to work at all. Police are supposed to
take several photos of similar looking men to the suspect
and put together six or eight total photos for a
victim to review, But in this instance, inexplicably, the investigators
(17:03):
only showed Crystal photos of the Duke Lacrosse team players.
Even still, despite having a very limited and illegally specific
pool of suspect photos, Crystal Mangum failed to id the
three players who were later charged. Meanwhile, DA Mike Nifong
had accelerated his commentary, going on a full fledged press blitz.
(17:26):
He spent hours talking to the press, opining that the
sexual assault was racially motivated and that the Duke Lacrosse
players were guilty. He even called Duke's Blue Devil's men's
lacrosse team a bunch of hooligans. But despite his projected
confidence to the press, DA Mike Kniphong had a problem.
(17:46):
Crystal Mangum's inability to id any of her supposed attackers
was not a good look for a district attorney putting
himself forward as her greatest champion, as the hero in
the fight against systemic racism and unders privilege he needed more. So,
officials tried again, this time showing Crystal a PowerPoint presentation
(18:08):
rather than a lineup of photos. This time, in the PowerPoint,
only one photo at a time was shown to Crystal
and they used only the photos of the forty six
white lacrosse players. It was at this point but the
presentation solidly stacked against the lacrosse players, that Crystal Mangum
identified Reed Seligman, David Evans, and Colin Finnerdy as her attackers.
(18:32):
She also said one other player was someone she recalled
seeing at the party, but it was later determined that
player had never even been there. Now, the issue with
how this lineup process was handled by the authorities, and
with Crystal identifying someone who had never even been at
the party, should have raised some questions in the minds
of the investigators, and in particular a veteran prosecutor like
(18:55):
Da Mike Kniphong. But Niphong never asked any questions along
the lines. He appeared to be in a race to
indict and tell the world the story of three white,
privileged lacrosse captains raping a poor black woman. Why was
Knifong so quick to wholeheartedly believe Crystal Mangam? Who was
she really? Twenty eight year old Crystal Mangum was a
(19:19):
student at North Carolina Central University who danced part time
to help make ends meet. She was divorced in supporting
her two children when Duke Universities Blue Devil's men's lacrosse
captains contacted her escort service allure and retained her services.
Crystal later told police she'd only recently started stripping, but
that wasn't exactly true. It turned out that Crystal had
(19:41):
worked at a strip club as far back as two
thousand and two, and at that strip club she'd apparently
stolen a taxi and tried to run over a police officer.
Now it doesn't appear that Crystal was convicted for this act,
just arrested, But wouldn't her history have given police in
Da Kniphong some I don't know, concern about her credibility,
(20:03):
especially since she had initially failed to identify the three
men she later picked out his rapists. The puzzle pieces
weren't falling neatly into place. The investigators in the DA
seemed unconcerned with dragging their young suspects names through the mud.
And who were these three young men standing accused of
nearly unimaginable violence? Well reed Seligman was a big midfielder
(20:26):
on the lacrosse team, a sophomore from New Jersey who
stood six feet one and weighed two hundred and fifteen pounds.
When he wasn't in session at Duke, Reid was a
camp counselor for lacrosse camps and had even traveled to
Kentucky to help poverty stricken families. His parents told the
reporter that Reed was a glass half full sort of optimist,
and they were right. Even as the scandal unfolded around him,
(20:50):
Reid apparently stayed very positive and even said he himself
wanted to become a lawyer. Colin Finnerty, lanky and taller
than his teammate Read Seligman, was an imposing six y
three but only way one hundred and seventy five pounds.
He was from Long Island, New York, a sophomore and
considered a rising lacrosse star. Finnerdy worked at a nine
(21:11):
to eleven charity and coached lacrosse at his high school
when he wasn't studying or playing for the Blue Devils
at Duke, and Dave Evans, a senior at the time
the scandal, broke, was a stellar student in addition to
being a lacrosse captain, he was bound to pursue an
NBA from the prestigious Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Despite their impressive track records on and off the field,
(21:34):
the public, much like the DA's office, was quick to
assume the player's guilt. Even Dave evans own lawyer Brad
Bannon later told ESPN that most people accused of crimes
are guilty. I had absolutely no problem believing that rich, white,
elite young men would take advantage of a young African
American woman that they had hired to come and perform
(21:54):
for them. Things were looking bleak for the players, and
the situation devolved further on April eighth, two thousand and six,
with the publication of the Group of eighty eight Statement.
What this consisted of was eighty eight Duke University faculty
members drafting and signing their names to a statement speaking
of a social disaster, expressing support for the accuser, and
(22:17):
highlighting the need to listen to survivors of sexual assault
and racial violence. Basically, it presumed the guilt of the
Duke University students before the due course of investigation and
law had run its course, The Group of eighty eight
statement played a significant role in shaping the campus and
the Durham community's discourse about the charges brought against Duke's
(22:39):
lacrosse team, reflecting and reinforcing the prevailing sentiment of privilege
versus vulnerability. But there had been no trial. There hadn't
even been an indictment yet, but the entire lacrosse team
had been found guilty in the court of public opinion,
including by the professors at their own university. Academics who
(23:00):
signed the statement had ignored the Bedrock American principle of
jurisprudence innocent until proven guilty, and in doing so they
arguably contributed to a rush to judgment and hostile environment
for the accused students. John Petoritz, the former speechwriter for
Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush, noted in
(23:21):
The New York Post that out of approximately seven hundred
professors teaching undergraduates at Duke, a significant number had seemingly
dismissed the presumption of innocence for the accused students. He wrote,
at a moment when Duke's students were being shadowed by
a rape accusation, one ninth of their professoriat had effectively
declared that those students did not deserve the presumption of innocence,
(23:44):
primarily because so many of their fellow students were supposedly
being victimized by the atmosphere of racism and sexism. This
perspective was further echoed by Stephen Baldwin, a professor of
chemistry at Duke, who succinctly captured the essence of the
dilemma facing the university and its community. There was a
collision between political correctness and due process and political correctness I.
(24:10):
Baldwin's words perfectly encapsulated the growing concern that in the
rush to address issues of racism and sexism, fundamental principles
of fairness and legal rights were being overshadowed. These conflicting
opinions became a focal point for debates about academic responsibility,
(24:31):
freedom of expression, and the role of university faculty in
commenting on ongoing legal matters involving students. While the public
debated the Group of eighty eight statement, due process, and
the unfolding scandal, generally, District Attorney Mike Nifong remained busy.
He went to the grand jury and obtained formal indictments
against Dave Evans, Read Seligman, and Colin Finnity. The reaction
(24:55):
was immediate and intense. Already under pressure from its own
facts culty in much of the media, Duke University, in
a decisive move, suspended the entire lacrosse team just eight
games into the season, sending a strong message that it
believed misconduct had occurred. This suspension, more than a mired
(25:15):
administrative action, escalated the situation, ensnaring the university at the
heart of a burgeoning national debate. After all, why suspend
the whole team? Three lacrosse players had been indicted, and yes,
the charges of rape and kidnapping against these three young
men were extremely serious, but no facts had been discovered
(25:36):
to suggest that any of the other players on the
Blue Devil's men's lacrosse team had had any role in
the alleged criminal conduct. The media firestorm ignited by the
indictments was relentless, playing out not only in traditional news outlets,
but also across cable news channels and the burgeoning expanse
of the Internet. Duke lacrosse players arrested on rape charges
(25:57):
screamed NPR rape allegation against athletes is Royling Duke printed
the New York Times, The case have become a lightning rod,
igniting heated discussions about sexual assault on college campuses, discussions
that continue to resonate and evolve to this day, and
of course these discussions are always well worth having. As
(26:17):
a result of this type of discourse, many campuses have
installed callboxes across campuses in case students feel unsafe while
moving about the various quads and byways that mark many
American universities. In statistics that should enrage and frighten us, all,
the Rape Abuse and Incest National Network are ai n
n RAIN estimates that one in every three women and
(26:41):
one in every six men will experience sexual assault while
attending college. That is absolutely terrifying. But just because those
stats are horrific, they still do not provide an excuse
for tossing enshrined US legal principles such as innocent intil
proven guilty aside like the eighty eight Duke factory members did,
(27:01):
Nor do they provide an excuse for the incomprehensible behavior
of DA Mike Nifong with his reckless reliance on faulty
photo lineups. The stage was set in April two thousand
and six for the players in this scandal to face
off in court. The biggest problem was figuring out just
who was really playing dirty. I told you that this
(27:22):
was a juicy scandal with some questionable flavors. Stay thirsty
and join me, Jay Harris, as I delved deeper into
the Duke Lacrosse scandal on next week's episode of Playing
Dirty Sports Scandals. Playing Dirty Sports Scandals is a production
(27:44):
of Dan Patrick Productions, never Ever Productions in Workhouse Media
from executive producers Dan Patrick, Paul Anderson, Nick Panela, Maya Glickman,
and Jennifer Clary. Hosted by Jay Harris, Written and produced
by Jen Brown, Francy Haiks, my Eglctment and Jennifer Claire
Welcome back to Playing dirty sports scandals. I'm Jay Harris,
your host. You're Barista, your unflinching guide through the scandalous
bowels of the sports world. Over the past twenty years
of my career as a journalist and sportscaster, I've hosted
ESPN shows from Sports Center to Outside the Lines. But
I'm playing dirty. There is no line. So if you're
feeling thirsty for a juicy scandal, then you've come to
(00:31):
the right tap, grab a cup, and gulp something that
tastes good and sits well before we dive in. Because
today's tale is darker than a prune and cherry juice blend,
and like that combo is impossible to stomach. Okay, I
(00:54):
don't know about you, but my favorite juicing cup is
a blue yetti cooler. You know, it's functional and classy.
But there weren't any of these cool cups being passed
around March thirteen, two thousand and six, at a Duke
University party. No way, the Duke lacrosse team hosting this
ill fated rager were slurping from those ubiquitous plastic red
(01:15):
cups that make the rounds on every college campus. And
you better believe that they weren't filled with juice. Alcohol
was flowing freely, and the exuberant young athletes were getting wilder.
It didn't matter that these guys were among the most
privileged in the United States. College kids from all walks
of life of a tendency toward rowdiness. Duke's undergraduate admissions
(01:38):
are among the most selective in the country, with an
overall acceptance rate of just six point two percent for
the class of twenty twenty six. The school has turned
out fifteen Nobel Laureates, three Touring Award winners, fifty Rhodes Scholars,
and fourteen Living Billionnaires. The students who attend Duke tend
to come from money or believe they're going to make
(01:59):
big bucks after graduation to efficiently pay off their student debt.
Since annual tuition exceeds sixty six thousand dollars, so Duke's
student body should arguably be exceptional. And the words of
American political activists Noam Chomsky, the more privilege you have,
the more opportunity you have, the more opportunity you have,
(02:19):
the more responsibility you have. Chomsky's words are spot on,
and Duke's stats are undeniably impressive, but I don't think
there's any doubt that college kids everywhere tear it up
on campus every now and then. We expect teenagers to
be naughty and push the boundaries sometimes, what we don't
expect as a society is for a group of duke
lacrosse team players who embody privilege to flush all sense
(02:43):
and morality down the toilet along with their wretched up
party punch. But that's what a woman named Crystal Mangum
alleged happened on March thirteenth, two thousand and six. Crystal
had been hired to perform at a duke lacrosse team's party,
and she gave police a harrowing account of what went
on that night. She accused three members of the lacrosse
(03:07):
team of heinous crimes of violence, claiming that she had
been raped, beaten, and choked, all allegedly unfolding in the
confines of a bathroom in a private off campus house.
And Crystal's allegation wasn't just about the violence. It was
steeped in a narrative of race and privilege. Here were affluent,
white male athletes from a highly respected university accused of
(03:30):
brutalizing a black woman, a stripper who stood on the
opposite end of the social hierarchy. Police sprang into action,
recognizing the seriousness of Crystal's allegation and understanding the shockwaves
her words would produce across Durham, North Carolina, where Duke
University is located, as well as the country at large.
(03:51):
Those shockwaves came hard and fast, hitting the city of
Durham first. Duke is the gem of Durham, which provides
a picturesque backdrop for its below university. It's a place
where the old and the new coalesce, creating an environment
that's as intellectually stimulating as it is charming. You can
really feel the history as you walk around Durham, and
(04:11):
certainly as you meander through the Duke University campus. But
as we know, there are many painful chapters in history,
and some of Duke's darker pages were brought to the
forefront along with Crystal's allegations against the university's lacrosse team.
For example, it wasn't until nineteen sixty one, amidst a
civil rights movement, that Duke opened its doors to African
(04:34):
American students, finally reflecting a pivotal shift in its approach
to diversity and inclusion. To put that in perspective, Harvard
University welcomed its first black undergraduate student in eighteen forty seven,
one one hundred and fourteen years earlier. Any way you
slice that limit is sour. The integration of black students
(04:55):
into Duke University was not nearly as fast as it
should have been, and the athletic fields at Duke acclimated
slowly too, increasing team diversity across a series of pioneering moments.
Ernie Jackson and Clarence Newsom, in nineteen seventy two, stepped
onto the football field as the university's first black scholarship players,
(05:16):
rewriting the playbook on diversity in college sports, and then
in nineteen seventy five, Chuck Sherwood sprinted onto the lacrosse field,
not only just as a player, but as a trailblazer,
being the first African American to join Duke's lacrosse team.
Sports at Duke are more than just historical notations in games, though.
(05:37):
They're a unifying thread that weaves through the campus's social fabric.
While the university boasts numerous athletic teams, it's the Blue
Devils men's basketball team that often steals the spotlight. Their
consistent prowess on the court is not just a matter
of pride, but a legacy of genuine triumphs. The team's
accomplishments are legendary, with five NCAA championships to their name
(06:01):
nineteen ninety one, nineteen ninety two, two thousand and one,
twenty ten, and twenty fifteen. They've also made sixteen Final
Four appearances, a testament to their enduring excellence. This story
basketball program, under the guidance of then coach Mike Krzyzewski,
known as Coach K, has become a powerhouse in college sports,
(06:23):
producing numerous NBA stars. The team's success on the court
has not only brought fame to Duke University, but has
also become a rallying point for students and alumni alike,
embodying the spirit of determination and excellence Duke represents. But
while Duke's basketball team often hogs the limelight, another sports
team at the university has carved out its own impressive niche.
(06:47):
The Duke Blue Devil's men's lacrosse team, first fielded in
nineteen thirty eight, has grown to become a formidable force
in college lacrosse. Over the years, this team has displayed
remarkable skill and tenacity on the fielding a reputation as
a top contender in the NCUBA lacrosse landscape. Before scandal
started to unravel from the ill fated party on March thirteen,
(07:08):
two thousand and six, The team had a significant track
record of achievement under then had coach Mike Presler, who
was hired in nineteen ninety one. They made their first
nc DOUBLEA tournament appearance shortly after coach Presler arrived and
had their first tournament win in nineteen ninety four. The
Duke Blue Devils men's lacrosse team won its first ACC
(07:29):
or Atlantic Coast Conference tournament the following year and even
advanced to the final four two years later. The team
continued to perform, winning consecutive acc tournaments in two thousand
and one and two thousand and two. All of Duke's
sports teams embodied the university's commitment to excellence, and coach
Mike Presler's men's lacrosse team was no exception, well until
(07:51):
two thousand and six, anyway, when their reputation went into
free fall because of what happened after a night of
college partying. You see, the young athletes were in celebration mode,
riding the high of a recent win against Loyola. Three
of the four captains of the lacrosse team decided to
host a party with a risky element at their off
(08:14):
campus house. So they pointed up eight hundred dollars to
hire two exotic dancers for their bash. This decision was
the beginning of a scandalous saga that would captivate the
nation and forever alter the lives of everyone involved. The
night didn't go as the lacrosse team had imagined from
the start. After an afternoon and evening of half hearted
(08:36):
drinking games like beer pong, the players were sprawled on
the floor or sitting in a circle of couches that
they'd arranged around a makeshift stage for the exotic dancers
they'd hired. Basically, their idea was that the women would
dance on a ratty tan carpet in the center of
the sofas. Dave Evans told his teammates that he and
the other team captains had requested white dancers, but a
(08:58):
black woman named Christo Mangam and an Hispanic woman named
Kim Roberts showed up. By all accounts, none of the
players cared about the race of the dancers who had
turned up, but they were all fairly taken aback by
the state of the entertainers. The stripper named Cristal appeared
to be so intoxicated that she had trouble standing up,
let alone dancing. The women groped each other unenthusiastically, with
(09:20):
Kim doing her best to support Crystal simultaneously. Years later,
Reed Seligman would tell Newsweek that anyone watching the actual
night unfold would have been bored to tears. At the time,
Reid remembered, we didn't know how to react. It was disgusting.
I was very uncomfortable, and I wasn't the only one. Indeed,
(09:42):
in a photo taken by one of the other players,
Reid appears to be physically recoiling as he watches the dancers.
The other players who were captured in that photograph seem
indifferent to Crysteal and Kim. They were mostly chatting with
one another and sipping from their plastic cups while the
two strippers groped each other off courtly. The performance by
(10:02):
Crystal and Kim was a total bust and lasted all
of five minutes, one of the players apparently inquired if
Crystal and Kim had any sex toys on them to
liven up their performance. Kim allegedly retorted by asking if
the player's penis was too small, and in response, the
crude player then supposedly brandished a broomstick and said use this.
(10:23):
The brandishing of the broom upset both Crystal and Kim,
who fled and locked themselves in the bathroom together. At
this point, the players just wanted the disastrous party to end,
so one of the co captains slipped one hundred dollars
under the bathroom door in an effort to get the
women to come out and go away. The escorts emerged,
(10:43):
but Crystal, partially undressed and screaming, began wandering around the yard.
From this point of the night, Crystal alleges that she
was forced back into the bathroom and physically assaulted. The
players alleged that both women drove off at this point
without re entering the proper, with Kim behind the wheel
of the car and Crystal slumped in the passenger seat
(11:09):
as dawn broke. On March fourteenth, two thousand and six,
the players of Duke's lacrosse team were probably sleeping off
the excesses and headaches of the night before, totally unaware
that Crystal Mangam, one of the lackluster dancers they briefly
engaged with just hours earlier, was telling the Durham police
that she'd been violently assaulted. Crystal claimed that three members
(11:32):
of the lacrosse team later identified as David Evans, Reed Seligman,
and Colin Finndy, had brutally beaten, raped, and choked her
in a bathroom while the rest of the team was
partying in the house. According to NBC's report on March
twenty nine, two thousand and six, court documents reviewed by
local paper The News and Observer had specifically recorded when
(11:55):
Crystal Mangam had another dancer, Kim Roberts, began their routines,
one of the men watching held up a broomstick and
threatened to sexually assault the women. They left, but were
followed out by a man who persuaded them to return.
That's when three men pushed Crystal into a bathroom and
began the assault, which she said lasted for thirty minutes.
(12:17):
Crystal's account was extremely distressing, and Mike Nifong, the Durham
County District attorney who had worked in the DA's office
for thirty years, took up her case against the Duke
Lacrosse Players with a fervor. In fact, Niphong was directly
involved very early in the case and made statements to
the press many many times. His level of early involvement
(12:39):
was unprecedented. Oddly, Mike Knipfhong seemed utterly unconcerned with the
rules that prohibit prosecutors from making public statements that might
prejudice a future jury. And if he'd had a sip
of clean green protein juice and cleared his head, Niphong
might have realized that a closer examination of the facts
before speaking to the press us would have been prudent.
(13:01):
After all, what did he really know in those first
days of the scandal unraveling well, DA Mike Nifong had
an unsubstantiated timeline of events for starters. The exotic dancers
Crystal Mangum and Kim Roberts were set to begin performing
for the Duke Lacrosse Players around midnight. We know that
Crystal and Kim left the party around one am, which
(13:24):
means that they weren't at the bash very long maybe
in our tops, and we know that from there, Crystal's
night became increasingly bizarre and contentious. The other stripper, Kim,
fought with Crystal after the party and later told authorities
that she had become so upset driving that she'd pulled
into a Kroger's supermarket parking lot and tried to kick
(13:45):
Crystal out of her car. When Crystal refused to vacate
the vehicle, Kim Roberts went into the Kroger store and
told the female security guard that Christel was refusing to
leave her car, So the guard walked outside to the
car and asked Crystal to leave, but still Crystal remained
in the vehicle. At one twenty two am, the Kroger
guard called nine to one one to report that Crystal
(14:07):
Mangum was refusing to leave a vehicle that did not
belong to her. When the police arrived in the wee
hours of the morning around two am, by now, they
also spoke with Crystal and tried to get her out
of Kim's car. Again, Crystal adamantly refused, and at this
point the police determined that she was having some sort
of mental health crisis. So convinced of this, were the police,
(14:31):
who are trained to assess these types of situations, that
they temporarily committed Crystal for his safety and the safety
of others. This means that the police took Crystal into
custody for the purpose of initiating an emergency short term
psychiatric hold. It was only at this fraught point that
Crystal told authorities that she had been raped by three
(14:52):
white boys at a party. In line with protocol, Crystal
was promptly sent to Duke University Medical Center, where she
was examined. There didn't it seemed to be any injuries
consistent with her having been violently raped and beaten, though
a rape kit was collected by the medical professionals. Now,
for those of you who don't know what a rape
kit is, it consists of samples or swabs collected from
(15:14):
a rape victim to test for DNA. The medical experts
also take photos of the patient's body to document any
injuries and take samples of any bodily fluids that might
be present on or inside the body. While this is
hardly an easy process for people who have been raped
to go through, it is vitally important if they hope
(15:34):
to realize justice. The rape kit process collects any DNA
evidence that may have been left behind by the offender,
and if DNA is recovered, then the police will submit
that DNA to the crime lab and wait for samples
of suspect DNA to compare the two and see if
they match. Since Crystal had various swabs and samples taken
(15:56):
from her body for the rape kit, it was now
time for the police to collect DNA from their suspects.
A judge ordered all forty six white lacrosse players to
provide DNA samples so they could be compared with the
DNA found on Crystal's body. The players gave DNA samples
without protest, seemingly keen to clear themselves quickly of any wrongdoing.
(16:17):
They also offered to take polygraph tests, but the police declined.
And here is where things start to get really weird,
really fast. Police publicized that there had been a rape
at the house and asked the public for information, and
when they showed photos of possible rape suspects to Crystal Mangum,
(16:38):
they only showed her photos of duke lacrosse players. Now,
this is not how photo lineups, as they are called,
are supposed to work at all. Police are supposed to
take several photos of similar looking men to the suspect
and put together six or eight total photos for a
victim to review, But in this instance, inexplicably, the investigators
(17:03):
only showed Crystal photos of the Duke Lacrosse team players.
Even still, despite having a very limited and illegally specific
pool of suspect photos, Crystal Mangum failed to id the
three players who were later charged. Meanwhile, DA Mike Nifong
had accelerated his commentary, going on a full fledged press blitz.
(17:26):
He spent hours talking to the press, opining that the
sexual assault was racially motivated and that the Duke Lacrosse
players were guilty. He even called Duke's Blue Devil's men's
lacrosse team a bunch of hooligans. But despite his projected
confidence to the press, DA Mike Kniphong had a problem.
(17:46):
Crystal Mangum's inability to id any of her supposed attackers
was not a good look for a district attorney putting
himself forward as her greatest champion, as the hero in
the fight against systemic racism and unders privilege he needed more. So,
officials tried again, this time showing Crystal a PowerPoint presentation
(18:08):
rather than a lineup of photos. This time, in the PowerPoint,
only one photo at a time was shown to Crystal
and they used only the photos of the forty six
white lacrosse players. It was at this point but the
presentation solidly stacked against the lacrosse players, that Crystal Mangum
identified Reed Seligman, David Evans, and Colin Finnerdy as her attackers.
(18:32):
She also said one other player was someone she recalled
seeing at the party, but it was later determined that
player had never even been there. Now, the issue with
how this lineup process was handled by the authorities, and
with Crystal identifying someone who had never even been at
the party, should have raised some questions in the minds
of the investigators, and in particular a veteran prosecutor like
(18:55):
Da Mike Kniphong. But Niphong never asked any questions along
the lines. He appeared to be in a race to
indict and tell the world the story of three white,
privileged lacrosse captains raping a poor black woman. Why was
Knifong so quick to wholeheartedly believe Crystal Mangam? Who was
she really? Twenty eight year old Crystal Mangum was a
(19:19):
student at North Carolina Central University who danced part time
to help make ends meet. She was divorced in supporting
her two children when Duke Universities Blue Devil's men's lacrosse
captains contacted her escort service allure and retained her services.
Crystal later told police she'd only recently started stripping, but
that wasn't exactly true. It turned out that Crystal had
(19:41):
worked at a strip club as far back as two
thousand and two, and at that strip club she'd apparently
stolen a taxi and tried to run over a police officer.
Now it doesn't appear that Crystal was convicted for this act,
just arrested, But wouldn't her history have given police in
Da Kniphong some I don't know, concern about her credibility,
(20:03):
especially since she had initially failed to identify the three
men she later picked out his rapists. The puzzle pieces
weren't falling neatly into place. The investigators in the DA
seemed unconcerned with dragging their young suspects names through the mud.
And who were these three young men standing accused of
nearly unimaginable violence? Well reed Seligman was a big midfielder
(20:26):
on the lacrosse team, a sophomore from New Jersey who
stood six feet one and weighed two hundred and fifteen pounds.
When he wasn't in session at Duke, Reid was a
camp counselor for lacrosse camps and had even traveled to
Kentucky to help poverty stricken families. His parents told the
reporter that Reed was a glass half full sort of optimist,
and they were right. Even as the scandal unfolded around him,
(20:50):
Reid apparently stayed very positive and even said he himself
wanted to become a lawyer. Colin Finnerty, lanky and taller
than his teammate Read Seligman, was an imposing six y
three but only way one hundred and seventy five pounds.
He was from Long Island, New York, a sophomore and
considered a rising lacrosse star. Finnerdy worked at a nine
(21:11):
to eleven charity and coached lacrosse at his high school
when he wasn't studying or playing for the Blue Devils
at Duke, and Dave Evans, a senior at the time
the scandal, broke, was a stellar student in addition to
being a lacrosse captain, he was bound to pursue an
NBA from the prestigious Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Despite their impressive track records on and off the field,
(21:34):
the public, much like the DA's office, was quick to
assume the player's guilt. Even Dave evans own lawyer Brad
Bannon later told ESPN that most people accused of crimes
are guilty. I had absolutely no problem believing that rich, white,
elite young men would take advantage of a young African
American woman that they had hired to come and perform
(21:54):
for them. Things were looking bleak for the players, and
the situation devolved further on April eighth, two thousand and six,
with the publication of the Group of eighty eight Statement.
What this consisted of was eighty eight Duke University faculty
members drafting and signing their names to a statement speaking
of a social disaster, expressing support for the accuser, and
(22:17):
highlighting the need to listen to survivors of sexual assault
and racial violence. Basically, it presumed the guilt of the
Duke University students before the due course of investigation and
law had run its course, The Group of eighty eight
statement played a significant role in shaping the campus and
the Durham community's discourse about the charges brought against Duke's
(22:39):
lacrosse team, reflecting and reinforcing the prevailing sentiment of privilege
versus vulnerability. But there had been no trial. There hadn't
even been an indictment yet, but the entire lacrosse team
had been found guilty in the court of public opinion,
including by the professors at their own university. Academics who
(23:00):
signed the statement had ignored the Bedrock American principle of
jurisprudence innocent until proven guilty, and in doing so they
arguably contributed to a rush to judgment and hostile environment
for the accused students. John Petoritz, the former speechwriter for
Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush, noted in
(23:21):
The New York Post that out of approximately seven hundred
professors teaching undergraduates at Duke, a significant number had seemingly
dismissed the presumption of innocence for the accused students. He wrote,
at a moment when Duke's students were being shadowed by
a rape accusation, one ninth of their professoriat had effectively
declared that those students did not deserve the presumption of innocence,
(23:44):
primarily because so many of their fellow students were supposedly
being victimized by the atmosphere of racism and sexism. This
perspective was further echoed by Stephen Baldwin, a professor of
chemistry at Duke, who succinctly captured the essence of the
dilemma facing the university and its community. There was a
collision between political correctness and due process and political correctness I.
(24:10):
Baldwin's words perfectly encapsulated the growing concern that in the
rush to address issues of racism and sexism, fundamental principles
of fairness and legal rights were being overshadowed. These conflicting
opinions became a focal point for debates about academic responsibility,
(24:31):
freedom of expression, and the role of university faculty in
commenting on ongoing legal matters involving students. While the public
debated the Group of eighty eight statement, due process, and
the unfolding scandal, generally, District Attorney Mike Nifong remained busy.
He went to the grand jury and obtained formal indictments
against Dave Evans, Read Seligman, and Colin Finnity. The reaction
(24:55):
was immediate and intense. Already under pressure from its own
facts culty in much of the media, Duke University, in
a decisive move, suspended the entire lacrosse team just eight
games into the season, sending a strong message that it
believed misconduct had occurred. This suspension, more than a mired
(25:15):
administrative action, escalated the situation, ensnaring the university at the
heart of a burgeoning national debate. After all, why suspend
the whole team? Three lacrosse players had been indicted, and yes,
the charges of rape and kidnapping against these three young
men were extremely serious, but no facts had been discovered
(25:36):
to suggest that any of the other players on the
Blue Devil's men's lacrosse team had had any role in
the alleged criminal conduct. The media firestorm ignited by the
indictments was relentless, playing out not only in traditional news outlets,
but also across cable news channels and the burgeoning expanse
of the Internet. Duke lacrosse players arrested on rape charges
(25:57):
screamed NPR rape allegation against athletes is Royling Duke printed
the New York Times, The case have become a lightning rod,
igniting heated discussions about sexual assault on college campuses, discussions
that continue to resonate and evolve to this day, and
of course these discussions are always well worth having. As
(26:17):
a result of this type of discourse, many campuses have
installed callboxes across campuses in case students feel unsafe while
moving about the various quads and byways that mark many
American universities. In statistics that should enrage and frighten us, all,
the Rape Abuse and Incest National Network are ai n
n RAIN estimates that one in every three women and
(26:41):
one in every six men will experience sexual assault while
attending college. That is absolutely terrifying. But just because those
stats are horrific, they still do not provide an excuse
for tossing enshrined US legal principles such as innocent intil
proven guilty aside like the eighty eight Duke factory members did,
(27:01):
Nor do they provide an excuse for the incomprehensible behavior
of DA Mike Nifong with his reckless reliance on faulty
photo lineups. The stage was set in April two thousand
and six for the players in this scandal to face
off in court. The biggest problem was figuring out just
who was really playing dirty. I told you that this
(27:22):
was a juicy scandal with some questionable flavors. Stay thirsty
and join me, Jay Harris, as I delved deeper into
the Duke Lacrosse scandal on next week's episode of Playing
Dirty Sports Scandals. Playing Dirty Sports Scandals is a production
(27:44):
of Dan Patrick Productions, never Ever Productions in Workhouse Media
from executive producers Dan Patrick, Paul Anderson, Nick Panela, Maya Glickman,
and Jennifer Clary. Hosted by Jay Harris, Written and produced
by Jen Brown, Francy Haiks, my Eglctment and Jennifer Claire
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