All charges against three players from the Duke men’s lacrosse team stemming from an incident last year with a stripper were dismissed Wednesday.
Former Blue Devils David Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann have faced intense scrutiny from the North Carolina justice system and national media for the past year, but have been cleared of all wrongdoing. North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper dropped all charges and declared the players innocent, putting full blame on Durham County District Attorney Mike Nifong, the prosecutor on the case.
“This case shows the enormous consequences of overreaching by a prosecutor,” Cooper said to The Associated Press. “[The investigation] led us to the conclusion that no attack occurred.”
Cooper took over the case from Nifong in January, due to allegations of ethical misconduct in Nifong’s handling of the case. Cooper told The Associated Press that the investigation into the stripper’s claims that she was sexually assaulted at a team party proved to be completely unfounded by the court’s evidence.
The three players stuck to their denial of all claims throughout the investigation, and despite the constant scrutiny, they finally received closure.
“It’s been 395 days since this nightmare began. And finally today it’s coming to a closure,” Evans said to The Associated Press. “We’re just as innocent today as we were back then. Nothing has changed. The facts don’t change.”
Nifong’s aggressive pursuit and the media’s willingness to accuse the three white players of sexually assaulting a black stripper pushed lacrosse into the national spotlight. The allegations created a negative public image for lacrosse players, depicting them as cocky, rich white males.
With the charges dropped, Terrapin men’s lacrosse coach Dave Cottle believes some of the tension in the lacrosse community has eased.
“I think there is a sense of relief,” Cottle said. “I think a lot of us use this as a teaching opportunity. Hopefully we can learn something and not put ourselves in this situation again.”
But Cottle cannot get over the fact that so many people were hurt in the process, largely due to an over-aggressive district attorney. He specifically empathized with former Duke coach Mike Pressler, who was made out to be the scapegoat and forced into resignation due to the incident even after developing Duke lacrosse into a national power.
“The sad thing that crossed my mind last night was that Mike Pressler lost his job because of something that the attorney general of the state of North Carolina said last night never occurred,” Cottle said. “It was sad for everyone involved – from the girl, to the players, to the coaches, to the team, to the parents. It was a sad situation. And the guy I felt the worst for beside the players was Mike Pressler because he wasn’t even there.”
Information from The Associated Press was used in this story. Contact reporter Adi Joseph at ajosephdbk@gmail.com.
