>> A FORMER INDIANA UNIVERSITY FRATERNITY MEMBER WAS ACCUSED OF
RAPING TWO SEPARATE WOMEN INTO VERY SIMILAR INSTANCES, BUT IN
THE END HE GOT TO PLEA GUILTY TO A LESSER CHARGE AND ONLY SERVED
ONE DAY BEHIND BARS, AND ONE
YEAR PROBATION.
HE WAS ACCUSED OF RAPING A WOMAN IN 2015.
SHE
WENT TO THE AUTHORITIES AND SAID THAT SHE WAS DRUNK, THEY WERE AT
A FRAT PARTY.
SHE WENT TO THE AUTHORITIES, SHE WENT TO A
HOSPITAL AND THEY FOUND OUT THAT SHE HAD LACERATIONS IN HER
GENITAL AREA.
INVESTIGATORS LOOKED INTO THE CASE AND FOUND
OUT THAT BACK IN 2013 THERE WERE SIMILAR ALLEGATIONS
AGAINST HIM.
THE CASES WERE
SIMILAR.
SO THEY THOUGHT WE ARE GOING TO GO AFTER HIM.
THEY
FOUND OUT THAT THERE WERE SOME SEVERE LIMITATIONS TO THIS CASE,
WHICH IS WHY THEY TOLD HIM THAT
HE COULD PLEAD GUILTY TO BATTERY WHICH WAS A FELONY.
IN COURT,
THEY DECIDED TO LESSEN THAT
FELONY TO A MISDEMEANOR.
THE LIMITATIONS IN THE CASE INDICATE
THAT THE JURY COULD NOT LEARN ANY INFORMATION ABOUT THE 2013
CASE.
THAT IS ALREADY A HUGE LIMITATION.
OBVIOUSLY ANOTHER
LIMITATION WAS THAT JUST BECAUSE SHE HAD LACERATIONS IN HER
GENITAL AREA, IT DIDN'T PROVE
THAT HE HAD RAPED HER.
>>OF COURSE.
YES.
>> IN THE END, THERE WERE TWO WOMEN THAT HAD SIMILAR STORIES
FROM TWO DIFFERENT YEARS, THIS GUY GOT TO PLEAD GUILTY TO
BATTERY, WHICH WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A FELONY, BUT THAT IT WAS
DROPPED TO LOWER TO A
MISDEMEANOR AND GOT OFF.
>> SUPER FRUSTRATING.
PART OF IT IS BECAUSE DEFENDANTS HAVE SOME
RIGHTS.
IN MY OPINION TOO MANY RIGHTS.
IS A VERY RARE CASE
WHERE DEFENDANTS HAVE TOO MANY
RIGHTS.
THEY WILL OFTEN SAY WE ARE ONLY TALKING ABOUT THIS
CASE.
WE DON'T WANT THIS CASE BEING PREJUDICED BY ANYTHING
ELSE HE MIGHT HAVE DONE IN
ANOTHER INCIDENT BECAUSE HE WANT TO BE FAIR.
THIS PART DRIVES ME
CRAZY, IF HE HAS A TRIAL BY A JUDGE, THE JUDGE SAYS I AM SMART
ENOUGH NOT TO PREJUDICE, BUT THE
JURY IS STUPID AND THEY WILL BE PREJUDICED.
WILL THEN DON'T HAVE
A JURY TRIAL.
EITHER YOU TRUST THEM OR YOU DON'T.
OFTENTIMES IT
WILL KEEP EVIDENCE AWAY FROM THE JURY BECAUSE THEY ASSUME THEY
ARE STUPID.
YES, THERE ARE CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE IT
IS ADMISSIBLE BECAUSE IT IS PART OF A PATTERN.
YOU COULD ARGUE
THAT THIS COULD BE PART OF A
PATTERN AND COULD BE ADMISSIBLE.
BUT THEY ARE NOT CLEAR ABOUT
THAT.
IF YOU HAVE RESOURCES, IT MAKES IT HARDER TO CONVICT YOU.
IT IS NOT ONE OF THE BIGGEST
PROBLEMS WE HAVE IN THE COUNTRY,
IT IS A RARE CASE WHERE THEY
HAVE TOO MANY RIGHTS.
EVEN IN THAT STANFORD RAPE CASE, IF YOU
WANT TO EMPATHIZE TOWARD SOME OF
THE YOUNGER DEFENDANTS OKAY, BUT AT LEAST DO IT TO EVERYBODY.
INSTEAD WE HAVE AN UNEQUAL
SYSTEM WHERE IF YOU ARE POOR AND YOU DON'T HAVE THOSE LAWYERS-
WHAT THEY ARE GOING TO DO TO THAT KID THAT IS TOO POOR AS
THEY ARE GOING TO SAY YOU ARE
FACING 48 YEARS.
YOU BETTER TAKE THIS PLEA DEAL FOR 24 YEARS.
NEXT THING YOU KNOW HE IS GOING
AWAY FOR 24 YEARS.
>>IT'S INTERESTING HOW THERE IS A HUGE DIFFERENCE IN HOW
PROSECUTORS DEAL WITH CERTAIN
PEOPLE FROM CERTAIN BACKGROUNDS.
I THINK IF THIS WAS A POOR
DISADVANTAGED INDIVIDUAL WHO
CAME FORWARD, BUT WAS ACCUSED OF RAPING TWO SEPARATE WOMEN,
NEITHER ONE OF THEM KNOW EACH
OTHER, BUT THEY EXPERIENCED THE SAME THING WITH THIS GUY, IF A
DISADVANTAGED PERSON WAS IMPLICATED IN A CASE LIKE THIS
THERE IS NO DISCUSSION ABOUT A
PLEA DEAL.
THE DISCUSSION ABOUT THE PLEA DEAL WOULD BE
DIFFERENT.
THE PLEA DEAL WILL BE IF YOU'RE CONVICTED YOU'RE GOING
TO
SPEND 50 YEARS BEHIND BARS SO WHAT YOU JUST GO AHEAD AND PLEAD
GUILTY TO RAPING THEM AND MAYBE
WE CAN GET YOU 25 YEARS.
BUT IF YOU ARE A FRATERNITY BROTHER
WITH A GOOD BACKGROUND, THAT IS TOTALLY FINE.
LET'S GO AHEAD AND
GIVE HIM THE BENEFIT OF THE
DOUBT AND MAKE IT SEEM AS THOUGH IT IS GOING TO BE DIFFICULT TO
PROVE THAT HE RAPED ANYONE.
SO THEN THAT TURNS INTO A FUCKING MISDEMEANOR.
>> YOU KNOW YOU ARE NOT GIVING THE SAME DEAL TO THE POOR.
IS
BRUTAL HOW WE PUT PEOPLE IN JAIL FOR MARIJUANA.
WE HAVE REPORTED CASES WERE PEOPLE GOT LIFE SENTENCES
FOR SMOKING MARIJUANA.
>>NOT IF YOU ARE WHITE OUT.
IF YOU ARE BLACK OR LATINO, YOU ARE
FUCKED.
BUT IF YOU ARE A WEALTHY WHITE PERSON, SMOKE A
WAY.
>> BARACK OBAMA SMOKED WEED WHEN HE WAS GOING TO COLUMBIA, NEVER
GETS ARRESTED.
NOW HE PUTS
PEOPLE IN JAIL BY THE MILLIONS BECAUSE HE WILL NOT TAKE IT OFF
A SCHEDULE ONE DRUG.
I AM NOT HATING ON YOU FOR SHOWING
EMPATHY TO DEFENDANTS, I JUST WISH YOU WOULD ALSO SHOW IT TO
POOR DEFENDANTS.
BUT WE NEVER GET THAT.
WE GET A BRUTAL SYSTEM AND AN INCREDIBLY LAX SYSTEM FOR
THE OTHER.