After a new national interest in the story—partly fueled by intervention from the cyber vigilante group Anonymous—the Maryville rape case may be reopened. The case’s original prosecutor, who dropped the rape charges against two prominent teen boys in the town of Maryville in March, says that a new special prosecutor will be assigned to the case, and will determine if new charges will be filed.
Last January, after consuming some alcohol together, two friends (a 14-year-old and a 13-year-old) snuck out of the house to meet a group of boys at a nearby party. While there, they were given more alcohol—to the point of intoxication. At that point, they both say they were raped by a 17-year-old boy and 15-year-old boy at the party. The act was filmed by other boys, and the video was distributed among their group of friends. The two boys say that the sex was consensual. Daisy, the 14-year-old victim, had to be carried to a car, weeping, and was left on her front lawn, passed out in sub-freezing temperatures overnight. Charges against the two accused rapists—one of whom is a football player on the local high school’s popular team and the grandson of a well-known area politician—were soon dropped. Daisy’s family became the subject of harassment. Her mother lost her job and was run out of town. Recently, the family’s home in Maryville (which they still own), was found burned to the ground. A new special prosecutor will now reexamine the case, may once again file charges against the two boys accused of rape …
(Note: The names of sexual assault victims are not generally published, but Daisy has elected to release her name in this instance.)
