Nearly two weeks after jurors deadlocked in the trial of three
men accused of raping a UCLA student a year and a half ago, some
campus groups have organized efforts in support of the alleged
victim.
The jury acquitted defendants Chuwan Anthony, DeShawn Stringer
and Jamar Dawson on some charges on May 27, and could not come to a
decision on others.
The three were accused of raping the student while visiting UCLA
on a field trip with their high school on Dec. 5, 2002. The only
way the men can now be found guilty is if the district attorney
chooses to retry them, and they are unanimously convicted on the
charges on which the original jury could not decide.
Christina Chala, a women’s studies and lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender studies student, made 1,000 buttons in
support of the woman after she heard the verdict. The court called
the alleged victim Jane Doe to protect her identity.
“Jane Doe. We Believe & Support You!” the
buttons read.
Chala, who also helped organize the Clothesline Project at UCLA,
said she made the buttons and passed all of them out on Monday and
Tuesday.
“It is just discouraging for other survivors that Jane Doe
was not believed,” Chala said. Attached to the buttons is a
short explanation of the trial and several facts about rape.
The Friends of Jane Doe, another organization upset with the
jury’s decision, has begun circulating an online petition in
support of the alleged victim.
“This petition supports and advocates safety living on
UCLA campus, awareness of sexual assault/battery and a fair retrial
of this case,” the petition reads.
As of early Wednesday morning there were over 3,300 signatures
from across the nation and world on the petition, including ones
from India and Arizona. Several UCLA students signed the petition
as well.
“It was crazy that the kids got off,” said Monique
Payton, a second-year anthropology and sociology student who signed
the petition. She said this was an example of how the law protects
criminals and punishes victims.
Jocelyn Wang, a Santa Monica resident and former UCLA student,
said she signed the petition and also had a hard time understanding
why the jury was deadlocked.
Wang posted information regarding the case on two of her blogs,
online forums that allow people to post material and receive
responses from the internet community.
She posted a Los Angeles Times story regarding the case and
links to Daily Bruin articles that had also covered the trial, as
well as her own personal commentary.
Wang said she received several responses to her posts, including
two responses from jurors on the trial.
Deputy District Attorney Alyson Messenger, who prosecuted the
three men, said she was aware of the actions in support of Jane
Doe. But she added that the actions would not influence the
decision for a retrial.
Messenger said a decision on retrial would be announced in court
on June 21. In the same hearing, Stringer, who was convicted of a
minor sexual battery charge, will be sentenced. He faces up to six
months in jail.