The End of the Duke Lacrosse Case -- Edited

Justice for some

In regards to the Duke lacrosse case, allow me to say that American justice is the best justice money can buy. This may represent a victory for the three exonerated players, but for the community this episode represents a tremendous loss. Of our justice system in North Carolina, it typifies no more than I expected were I privileged and white. If only justice could be this meticulous for all our citizens, what a truly great state this would be. But I am not naive. I am a son of the South, albeit a black sheep of the family. I do know our southern trees have bearded strange fruit in the guise of black men for "allegedly" raping white women, let alone looking at them. As I am happy to see this ordeal come to closure to some degree, I must also ask not just the families of the exonerated players but also supporters of this Duke lacrosse case, how does it feel to be wrongfully accused in a matter of race and rape? True to form, as many legal scholars have predicted, the case where a black woman may be the victim of a rape and her alleged assailants are white, rarely does the case ever see the inside of a courtroom. Again I reiterate, had these families come from different zip codes and attended a less prestigious institution, these boys would be in jail right now at the mercy of a public defender. W. RUSSELL ROBINSON Durham April 14, 2007 Published In the Durham Herald Sun