The Truth Matters
The Central Park Five Were Guilty
Setting aside Donald Trump for a moment, the five individuals known as the Central Park Five were never proven innocent. Another individual who was in the park that night confessed to raping the jogger and DNA confirmed he was the only person to have ejaculated inside of her. Can we agree that if you hold down a woman while she is getting raped you’re guilty of the same rape? Can we agree that if you fondle a woman’s breasts why your friends are holding her down and raping her — you’re guilty of rape too? Can we agree that if you bash the head of a woman so she falls to the ground so your friends can rape her — you’re guilty of rape too? The law in the State of New York is very clear on the matter — they were all guilty.
The reality is that if you participate in a criminal activity — in this case running down a female jogger, forcing her on the ground, ripping her clothes off, fondling her breasts, bashing her head in, and violently raping her — you’re just as guilty as any single participant. Just because you didn’t insert your penis inside of the victim doesn’t mean you’re innocent.
For those of you who weren’t living in New York City in 1989 you might not remember the “Central Park Five”. In mid-April between 9 and 10 pm thirty teenagers committed several attacks, assaults, and robberies in Central Park. Initially they robbed a 52-year-old man, next they threw rocks at a taxi, then they chased a couple riding a tandem bike, then they attacked at 40-year-old jogger — hitting on the head with a lead pipe. The jogger was attacked because he came upon the group of teenagers (numbering over 20) at least twelve of whom were assaulting a woman laying on the ground. Shortly afterward the police arrested five of the teenagers as they fled the scene — the majority of the suspects, including Matias Reyes, were able to escape and avoid arrest.
During interrogations, with their parents present, two of the teenagers told police that their friend Antron McCray smashed the woman’s head “killing her” (when police found her body her head was smashed in and her body temp was falling fast — 80 degrees — she ultimately survived). One of the teenagers, Raymond Santana, insisted he never had intercourse with the jogger, claiming, “I had nothing to do with the rape. All I did was feel her tits.” Korey Wise in a recorded call with a visitor claimed he only held the woman down — he didn’t have intercourse with her either. Thirteen years later Matias Reyes, serving a life sentence for other crimes, admitted to the rape and after testing police were able to match his DNA to the semen found inside of the victim.
The DNA didn’t disprove the fact that Antron smashed Trisha’s head in. The DNA didn’t disprove the fact that Raymond groped Trisha’s breasts as Matias raped her. The DNA didn’t disprove that Korey held Trisha down as Antron smashed in her head, Raymond groped her, and Matias raped her. Remember, these teenager admitted to their crimes — over and over again. The fact that only one of them was able to ejaculate inside of Trisha before being discovered by the male jogger shouldn’t exonerate their participation in the crime.
At the end of the day Matias was never formally charged for the rape or the attack — the matter is closed and New York is trying to heal. But don’t think for a minute the Central Park Five were innocent — they were guilty of everything but ejaculating.
Now to address your point regarding the Central Park Five and Donald Trump. During the height of the media storm related to the attacks in Central Park Donald Trump advocated for the reinstatement of the death penalty. He, like most New Yorkers, wanted see the Central Park Five hung by their necks. More recently when asked about the Central Park Five Donald Trump simply stated the assailants were guilty — they admitted their guilt — he did not call for them to be killed (or at least I can’t find it). The prosecutor and detectives involved in the case at the time — still insist that they are guilty of the crimes. Donald Trump — like many New Yorkers still remember the case and are frustrated that the Central Park Five were paid $40M and star in a movie — while their victim STILL suffers from the attack.
To suggest they were “proven” innocent is to ignore ALL of the facts. Did they serve enough time for their crimes? I don’t know. Should they be given the death penalty? I don’t know. Is the death penalty wrong? I don’t think so — as long as men aren’t in charge of deciding who lives and dies. Men are flawed — we make mistakes — unless we can be sure we never make mistakes (and we can never be sure) we shouldn’t execute another person. But that is just me — I support the idea of the death penalty — just not the implementation.
