Ethics in Business
Assignment # 8
Assignment 8 Signature Assignment – The Duke Lacrosse Team and the Prosecutor Faculty Use Only
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Table of Contents
Learner: Stanley Coniglio 1
Assignment 8 Signature Assignment – The Duke Lacrosse Team and the Prosecutor 3
Introduction 4
Impact on Stakeholders 5
The Race Factor 6
Elitism and the Rush to Condemn 7
Further Persecution from Duke University and NOW 8
The indictments 9
The Misconduct During the Investigation 9
Ethics and Injustice by the District Attorney 10
The Outcome and Fairness of Punishment 11
The Results of the Indictments 11
The Ensuing Problems for district attorney Mike Nifong 12
A Small Symbol of Restitution 13
Conclusion 13
References 14
Assignment 8 Signature Assignment – The Duke Lacrosse Team and the Prosecutor
Case study using Case 10.17, The Duke Lacrosse Team and the Prosecutor, on pp. 567-570.
The problem to be investigated is the attempt of the prosecutor to falsely charge three Duke lacrosse team members for a crime in which they were subsequently exonerated.
Introduction
This essay is about the controversial case in which three members of the Duke lacrosse team were accused of rape. The case was sensationalized by the fact that it involved a sports team from elite, mostly white, college and a black stripper. According to an article by Law & Contemporary Problems:
When questions surfaced about the veracity of the allegations and the lack of corroborating evidence, the District Attorney, with an election looming, repeatedly opined in the media about the strength of the case and the character of the accused. Three team members were indicted, despite the existence of alibi evidence shared with the prosecution and exculpatory evidence withheld by the prosecution. Yet, even as some within the media, the public, and the bar began to exercise closer scrutiny of the circumstances, others assumed that the students must be guilty as charged.
(Bradley, K., 2008) The case had all the elements of a soap opera. Almost everyone had a strong opinion about the case — whether you were a sports fan, and college student, a member of the black community, or a member of the white community. The case had elements of sex, racism, and elitism. This case made the headlines nationwide. Initially, it was widely believed that the Duke lacrosse team members who were accused were guilty, but subsequently they were found to be innocent.
Impact on Stakeholders
On March 14th, 2006, Kim Roberts and Crystal Gail Mangum — two strippers were hired to entertain at Duke lacrosse team party. Kim Roberts called 911; she told Durham police that a white male was yelling racial slurs at her. Later that night, a Duke security guard called the Durham police regarding Crystal Gail Mangum who was in Kim Roberts' car and was visibly intoxicated. Crystal Gail Mangum reported to the police that three white members of the Duke University lacrosse team beat and raped her. Durham County District Attorney, Mike Nifong, was immediately determined to bring these three men to justice. Mike Nifong’s popularity among African–Americans was very low, because of a derogatory comment he made about a line in a Martin Luther King speech. He wanted to improve his standing with the African-American voters for the upcoming election for District Attorney. He apparently felt that this case could help improve his popularity if he could convict the three white men accused of rape against a black woman. The story had elements of diverse social classes and racial divide that it made for good reading. The media took sides immediately with no regard for the real victims in this case — the Duke lacrosse team. In an article in American Journalism Review: As the shocking allegations ricocheted across the nation and a