Teen’s rape charge pulled
Details show incident at East wasn’t assault
Rape charges against a 16-year- old East High School student were dropped Thursday after investigators reviewed forensic evidence and school camera footage.
Investigators from the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office would not comment on the evidence, but an attorney representing the boy said from what he saw on the tape, the “encounter” was consensual.
“What I saw was two kids walking down the hall and hugging it up,” said Sam Perkins. “When I saw them a few minutes later coming back down the hall, it was the same thing.”
The female, an 18-yearold special education student, reported being raped Aug. 14 at the school. She was taken to the Regional Medical Center at Memphis for abdominal pain.
According to a police affidavit, she was going to her sixth-period class with food from Taco Bell and her teacher said she could not bring food into class.
She told authorities she was eating at the top of a stairway when the boy “came from nowhere,” grabbing her by the arms, forcing her down the stairs and to the ground in the basement. She said she tried to escape, but her attacker locked the door and slapped her twice in the face, dragged her across the floor and tried to rape her again, according to the police affidavit.
The affidavit also said that a friend of the girl noticed she was missing from class and went to find her. When she heard her screaming, she went for help.
Perkins said the video shows no struggle, only the couple walking together in the hallway.
“Nobody witnessed any screaming,” Perkins said.
Initially, the boy was charged with rape. The charge was upgraded when authorities were told the girl suffered injuries and was of diminished mental capacity.
A judge denied bail Aug. 15 and ordered the boy held in Juvenile custody.
The details began changing last Friday when the charge was reduced to simple rape, and the boy was released from custody.
Interim Supt. Dorsey Hopson told the school board Tuesday night that the news media had “rushed to judgment” in the case. He said no rape had occurred.
The district issued a media alert Wednesday, adding “context” to Hopson’s remarks, i ncluding that he did not mean to imply there had been “any determination i n this case” and that the matter was still under investigation.