Source: dukechronicle.com 12/12/24
Crystal Mangum, the woman who falsely accused three Duke men’s lacrosse players of rape in 2006, admitted she lied about the allegations and asked for David Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann’s forgiveness.
Mangum made her confession in an interview published Wednesday on “Let’s Talk with Kat,” hosted by Katerena DePasquale, at the North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women. Unrelated to the lacrosse case, Mangum is currently in prison after being convicted of second-degree murder of her then-boyfriend in 2013.
“I testified falsely against them by saying that they raped me when they didn’t, and that was wrong, and I betrayed the trust of a lot of other people who believed in me,” Mangum said in the interview. “[I] made up a story that wasn’t true because I wanted validation from people and not from God.”
Then-N.C. Attorney General Roy Cooper did not prosecute Mangum for perjury after the case was dismissed, saying at the time that the investigators thought “she may have actually believed the many different stories that she has been telling.” The statute of limitations on perjury charges typically lasts two years in North Carolina law, meaning that Mangum can no longer be prosecuted for lying under oath.
Duke Athletics declined The Chronicle’s request for comment on Mangum’s statement. University administration, former University President Richard Brodhead, then-head men’s lacrosse coach Mike Pressler and Seligmann did not respond to The Chronicle’s request for comment in time for publication.
Mangum’s statement comes nearly two decades after she asserted that she was raped by the lacrosse players. Until now, she had never publicly stated that it was not true.
In her 2008 book “Last Dance for Grace: The Crystal Mangum Story,” Mangum wrote, “I will never say that nothing at all happened that night,” after which she provided graphic details of the alleged incident. However, she has told inconsistent accounts of the night throughout the past 18 years.
DePasquale added that when she initially contacted Mangum, she was not aware that Mangum wanted to apologize. However, Mangum expressed her desire to apologize to the players in her response to DePasquale’s request for an interview.
At least she’s not too dangerous to society to register.
And beyond the statute of limitations no less…
Where is the repeal of that criminal and civil laws for the benefit of others when it comes to this?
There’s court precedent that would dismiss this recant (admittance of the truth) in court, btw.
Sue her for defamation. Not going to get a dime, but at least it’s on the books.
Pay her no attention, she does not deserve it. She is only doing this now for publicity, just like when she made the original accusation. She is not sorry. I hope there is a nice warm spot for her in h*ll.
Want to hear something sad about this? The elected president felt the need to way in and say how she destroyed lives by her accusations. Yet accusations like this have destroyed hundreds of thousands of lives and even put people on the registry. He is as responsible for unfounded accusations as anyone. If you remember the central park 5 case, then you know of what I speak. Nothing like a little projection to cover up a uninformed opinion.