Guilty Verdict in Steubenville Rape Trial

Steubenville, OH, high school football players Trent Mays, 17, and Ma’lik Richmond, 16, were found guilty of rape today in a juvenile court trial. Judge Thomas Lipps also deemed Mays guilty of disseminating a nude photo of a minor. Richmond was sentenced to a minimum of one year in a juvenile correction facility and Mays to at least two years. They will both be credited with time already served, but could potentially remain in juvenile jail until they’re 21.

The teen victim in the case was a 16-year-old young woman who was reportedly unresponsively drunk during the time that the young men raped her digitally. In her testimony, she said she remembered little about the events of the night because she had been so intoxicated. Another Steubenville football player (who was granted immunity) admitted to making and posting a cellphone video on YouTube of one of the rape incidents. He also testified that Mays tried to have the young woman perform a sex act on him but that she didn’t respond.

For more about the Steubenville case from Ms. Bloggers, see:

“Thinking About the Steubenville Rape and Raising a Son”

“The 18,437 Perpetrators of Steubenville”

“Rape, Steubenville, Social Media: How About Another Sort of Super Bowl Sunday?”

 

Image of scale of justice from Wikimedia Commons

 

About

The late Michele Kort—a dedicated feminist—was the senior editor of Ms. magazine for 13 years. She died June 26, 2015, after a long battle with ovarian cancer. She worked for decades in field of journalism, covering sports, music, culture, art and feminist issues for publications like LA Weekly, The Advocate, Shape, Redbook, Los Angeles Times Magazine, Songwriter, InStyle, Living Fit, Fit Pregnancy, Vegetarian Times, Fitness, UCLA Magazine, Women's Sports and Fitness and more. She is the author of four books, including a biography of singer/songwriter Laura Nyro, Soul Picnic: The Music and Passion of Laura Nyro. Rest in power, Michele.