165 replies to this topic

[FolsomJunior00]

The kid is definatly innocent....all the rumors that are out there appear to be true, so the kid just had his life ruined over some stupid girls......


how stupid id that?

It reminds me of what happened two years ago, when a girl claimed rape at the school, then said she was lying so she could get the boy in trouble. Same thing is happening now

Damn, this world is messed up

[camay2327]

I think we should all wait until all the facts are out and not go by rumors.

[Folsomite]

I agree. Just like the Maui murder case, we have no choice but to let the police and detectives figure out the facts. Rumors are rumors. It's pointless to feed them by collecting hearsay. The fact is, you don't know the facts. The only people who do are the suspect and victims.

[bordercolliefan]

I assume there may be some physical evidence that will help establish what happened or didn't happen.

I agree, we need to wait for the police to finish their investigation.

Personally, however, I doubt the girls are lying. For one thing, it is highly coincidental that numerous girls would all come forward with similar stories of sexual misconduct. I haven't heard any evidence yet that they were all close friends likely to cook up a conspiracy together. Furthermore, the girls' lives have been "ruined," too -- the newspapers indicate they have been the subject of derision and ostracism since making their allegations.
Given the negative consequences they have incurred, I don't think there is any incentive for the girls to be making up stories that aren't true.

My hunch is that the girls are telling the truth. I think it's sad that high school students are so quick to demonize the rape victim rather than the aggressor -- I though we had already gotten past that kind of misogyny.

[folsomBlondie]

This is a very serious case, rumors are not good for this kid.

[Ahnold]

if these girls are all lying, then they do more than damage the life of an innocent young man, they ruin the credibility of ANY victim of violence. That in and of itself is incredibly offensive.

That being said, Bordercolliefan raises the same point I would make - four victims, all in a short time frame, with consistent stories. What would prompt them to coordinate such an attack against one young man? That defies logic. I hope the police get to the bottom of this for the sake of all involved.

And Junior - I for one am finding your little smart-arse routine wearing thin - on just about every topic on this board. You may very well be proven correct on this matter, but I find your prejudicial use of the term "stupid girls" incredibly offensive on their behalf. I will be the first to apologize to you if they are in fact lying, but I would certainly expect you to be man (I assume) enough to do the same if they are indeed victims.

[Steve Heard]

I don't know the truth in this, but there is a larger issue that I think is important.

That is, how seriously do kids view rape these days? What is rape to them.

When we think of rape, many think of the ambush of woman jogging, or the break in of her apartment. Most rapes, however, are nothing like that. Most often they are the type where a known man forces his way with with the victim.

The trouble is, some kids seem to think that it's not such a big deal.

There is a kid in town who some of the girls have nicknamed 'Mike the rapist', because he has forced himself on several girls that they know, usually after drinking or doing drugs. The girls who know him but who haven't been his victims think the girls are 'stupid' for allowing it to happen, and for getting wasted and out of control. They think Mike is an opportunistic pig, but don't put him in the same category as the ambush or break-in rapist, when in fact, he is worse.

As far as I know, none of the girls have reported him.

[forumreader]

Experts call rape one of the most underreported crimes in America. Why? Many reasons, including feelings of fear, shame, guilt, and concerns of not being believed. The attitude embodied in Junior's post is a prime example of what a victim fears she might have to contend with.

Junior: We don't know the facts. Rumors are not facts.

Following are some real facts which might help educate Junior & friends:

The US Dept. of Justice estimates that somewhere in America a woman/girl is raped every 2 minutes.

Only 16% of rapes are reported to law enforcement.
(This data was obtained by Dept. of Justice working together with a national women's study group, which conducted a telephone survey of a national household probablity sample of female adults (18 yrs. of age).)

Only 31% of rapes are stranger rapes. (That means most victims know their assailant.) - The rates of acquaintance rapes are higher on college campuses - 80% of victims know their assailant.

The FBI reports estimate that only 8% of reported rapes are false reports.

These figures are about 4 years old. I don't imagine the picture has changed much.

I have heard some of the rumors from high school students. They are indeed vicious, and I truly hope they will cease.

[forumreader]

I feel it is extremely inappropriate that the details of the high school rumors surrounding the alleged rape be posted in this Forum. Other members also have suggested that we wait for law enforcement to complete their job.

I hope there will be no more discussion of the details of these rumors.

[OctoberLily]

I agree that we need to allow the detectives to finish their investigation and clear up some of the rumors going around.

I'm a parent of two FHS students and they have come home with the same rumors **except** the one about one of the victims being in Karate. They too find it incredible that the boy could do what he did to all these girls because of his body size. Anyways, I had to remind them that all the rumors are just rumors and not facts.

The lesson they have come away with this incident is to be extremely careful in their interactions with the female gender at their school.

I think that a lot of the male students are unsure about how they should interact with their female friends. What used to be "playful flirting or touching" may be regarded as "sexual assualt" - if they were to piss off the girl or their friendship turns sour. (I'm not saying that this is the case with the recent incident. However, I'm sure that this is probably fueling the rumor mill at the school.)

I think that the school should have an assembly to defuse the rumor mill and specifically clarify what could be considered sexual assault so that the students are clear on the subject and can move on with the information.

I hope for the best for both parties in this case because I'm sure both sides are going through a lot of heartache right now.

[FolsomJunior00]

We do, as citizens, have the right to voice our opinion of certain issues, i have voiced mine, you are allowed to voice yours, and you have the right to be silent about it. It would be of bad taste to name names and all that, but its ok to give opinions. In my opinion, the kid is innocent because these girls lied. Some may have different opinions, and hey, im all for it. But i think they should be allowed to be discussed, because this is a serious issue in Folsom right now. Why have these forums when we cannot talk about the serious issiues

[john]

Folsom Junior, I understand your point but I feel the same way as forumreader. Discussing rumors on this forum is inappropriate. I deleted your post. Call me a Nazi webmaster or whatever you will, but we cannot feed speculation and hearsay. I apologize if this offends you, but I cannot condone it.

[FolsomJunior00]

Might as well delete the whole thread then, you big fat nazi

[john]

LOL!

[FolsomJr17]

Kobe style.