Press Release:
Greetings, World.
We are #OpMaryville
Two young girls have been raped in the town of Maryville, Missouri. Another high school football star, the grandson of a Missouri state official, has walked free. The people of Maryville turned their backs on these victims and one family has been forced to flee the town. Their house was later burned to the ground.
On January 8th, a 14-year-old girl named Daisy Coleman and her 13-year-old friend were both raped in Maryville. Evidence of this assault was captured on film. Daisy's unconscious body was later dumped into her family's yard, left alone for hours in freezing weather. One of Daisy's attackers was initially in police custody, where he admitted to having sex with her while she was under the influence. He claimed it was consensual. The hospital states the young girl's blood alcohol level was almost twice the legal limit and they discovered three tears inside of her body, 2-4 inches in length. When asked if a crime occurred, the Sheriff told the press, "Hell yes, it occurred... And did these boys need to be punished for it? Absolutely.”
One suspected rapist is Matthew Barnett, a student at the University of Central Missouri. He's the grandson of Missouri state Representative, Rex Barnett. At 17, Barnett was legally considered to be an adult. All charges against him have been dropped.
We demand an immediate investigation into the handling by local authorities of Daisy's case. Why was a suspect, who confessed to a crime, released with no charges? How was video and medical evidence not enough to put one of these football players inside a court room? What is the connection of these prosecutors, if any, to Rep. Rex Barnett? Most of all, We are wondering, how do the residents of Maryville sleep at night?
We have heard Daisy's story far too often. We heard it from Steubenville, Halifax and Uttar Pradesh. In some cases, it was too late. Both Amanda Todd and Rehtaeh Parsons, girls not much older than Daisy, took their own lives after the adults, the police and the school system, failed to protect them. If Maryville won't defend these young girls, if the police are too cowardly or corrupt to do their jobs, if justice system has abandoned them, then we will have to stand for them. Mayor Jim Fall, your hands are dirty. Maryville, expect us.
We Are Anonymous.
We Are Legion.
We do not forgive.
We do not forget.
Join us.
Press:
Nightmare in Maryville (via @duganarnett at @KCStar)
http://www.kansascity.com/2013/10/12/4549775/nightmare-in-maryville-teens-sexual.html
Timeline of the Maryville Rape: (Peggy Lowe at @kcur)
http://kcur.org/post/sexual-assault-maryville-timeline
#OpMaryville #Justice4Daisy
