Topic category:  Government/Politics

Associated Press, April 18, 2011:

"The woman who falsely accused Duke lacrosse players of raping her is now charged with murder in her boyfriend's death.

"Crystal Mangum was charged Monday in Durham with first-degree murder and two larceny charges.

"Mangum has been jailed since April 3. She was initially charged with assault with a deadly weapon in the stabbing of 46-year-old Reginald Daye. He died after nearly two weeks at a hospital.

"Mangum falsely accused Duke University lacrosse players of raping her at a 2006 party at which she was hired to perform as a stripper. She's had numerous legal troubles since then.

"An attorney for Mangum did not immediately return a call seeking comment."

Being Crystal Mangum's boyfriend was a bad choice by Daye, but who really thinks that the decision to give Mangum a pass on prosecution for making baseless charges had nothing to do with Daye's death?

In "Duke Case: False Accuser Crystal Gail Mangum Should Not Get a Pass" (April 18, 2007) (http://www.webcommentary.com/php/ShowArticle.php?id=gaynorm&date=070416, I criticized the pass Mangum got as the North Carolina Democrat establishment tried to move on quickly after it had become apparent that the horrific criminal charges pursued against the Duke Three were bogus.

I wrote: "The North Carolina Democrat establishment may find it helpful not to prosecute false accuser Crystal Gail Mangum and to pretend that the problem was just an individual--Durham County, North Carolina District Attorney Michael B. Nifong--failing to investigate properly, but that is revisionist history covering up the racist component of the prosecution and a deeper corruption problem."

I quoted from the LieStoppers message board what some found shocking:

"'I really don't feel in my gut any need to go charge Crystal Mangum,' lawyer Wade Smith of Raleigh said. 'I understand the philosophy that people shouldn't be able to just do this and get away with it. On the other hand, I'm not sure that it enhances our society any, our civilization any, to now bring the power down upon her.'

"Mangum, he said, 'is just one human being.' The reason the prosecution moved forward, he said, was because Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong failed to investigate the case. Smith said Nifong did not look into Mangum's history of alcohol abuse and psychological instability."

Would Daye be alive today if, in Smith's carefully chosen words, "the power" had been brought "down" upon Mangum...or is Daye another victim of the way the hoax was handled?

Mr. Smith's words were exactly what I had expected and the North Carolina Democrat establishment then needed.

I explained:

"Mr. Smith represented Collin Finnerty.

"Mr. Smith's law firm's online profile of him states in part: 'In 1973 Mr Smith was elected to the North Carolina House of Representatives and was reelected in 1975. In 1977 he retired from politics to devote full time to the practice of law. In 1985 he was elected to a one-year term as chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party.'"

I urged:

"Do not be deceived: Mr. Nifong would not have prosecuted if Ms. Mangum was white or the defendants were black. He was playing the race card. He would not have concealed exculpatory DNA evidence and lied to both the court and defense counsel if he was not playing the race card and banking on a black bloc vote to elect him.

"Ms. Mangum may or may not be deluded. She surely filled a false rape report. Ignoring it would be wrong.

"There are racist blacks as well as racist whites, and that needs to be appreciated if racial progress is to be made.

"It was appropriate of North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper to add that the evidence showed that Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty and David Evans were innocent of the heinous first-degree felony charges on which they were indicted, but let's not idolize him for telling the truth and let's not forget that he did nothing to help the situation until Durham County, North Carolina District Attorney Michael B. Nifong asked him to replace him on the Duke case."

I also quoted this excerpt from an article of mine posted on several websites in mid-June of 2006 entitled "Concerned Americans, let North Carolina hear from you": "All Americans who care about the state of the criminal justice system have a stake in this case. Rapes should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, and so should false accusations of rape by opportunists (including an opportunist who would hope to profit by a false charge and exacerbate racial tension by targeting people of a different color)."

I urged people across the country to write to Attorney General Cooper and others, stating:

"Share your thoughts with them. Let them know that knowingly prosecuting innocent people for political purposes is a no no (regardless of race, color, creed, national origin or sex).

"Use you own words, but feel free to make some of these words your own:

"Regarding the Duke University 'rape' case, it has come to my attention that an investigation into how the legal case developed and the actions of Durham County District Attorney Michael Nifong in particular is in order.

"It now appears that some of Mr. Nifong's actions were not only inappropriate, but an egregious abuse of the power entrusted to him for his own political/personal purposes.

"If so, his conduct has been grossly unprofessional and the State Bar needs to act.

"Much more than the futures and lives of three young men indicted on the basis of a misleading presentation of evidence is in your hands. The integrity of the criminal justice system and public confidence in it are in your hands.

"To be sure, the message must be sent that rape, sexual assault and kidnapping will not be tolerated.

"But messages also must be sent that a hoax will not be tolerated either, and the exposure of a hoax will not be delayed for political/partisan purposes.

"Gentleman, you did not ask for it, and you surely did not expect it, but the Duke University 'rape' case has become your responsibility. It is vital that you deal with it responsibly and expeditiously, for everyone's sake.

"Thank you for your anticipated attention to this now monumentally important matter."

Eventually the truth prevailed and the politically and racially based prosecution that was a persecution ended with a declaration from the North Carolina Attorney General that the Duke Three were innocent, but...Mangum got a pass...and her boyfriend Daye died after she stabbed him.

Michael J. Gaynor

Biography - Michael J. Gaynor

Michael J. Gaynor has been practicing law in New York since 1973. A former partner at Fulton, Duncombe & Rowe and Gaynor & Bass, he is a solo practitioner admitted to practice in New York state and federal courts and an Association of the Bar of the City of New York member.

Gaynor graduated magna cum laude, with Honors in Social Science, from Hofstra University's New College, and received his J.D. degree from St. John's Law School, where he won the American Jurisprudence Award in Evidence and served as an editor of the Law Review and the St. Thomas More Institute for Legal Research. He wrote on the Pentagon Papers case for the Review and obscenity law for The Catholic Lawyer and edited the Law Review's commentary on significant developments in New York law.

The day after graduating, Gaynor joined the Fulton firm, where he focused on litigation and corporate law. In 1997 Gaynor and Emily Bass formed Gaynor & Bass and then conducted a general legal practice, emphasizing litigation, and represented corporations, individuals and a New York City labor union. Notably, Gaynor & Bass prevailed in the Second Circuit in a seminal copyright infringement case, Tasini v. New York Times, against newspaper and magazine publishers and Lexis-Nexis. The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed, 7 to 2, holding that the copyrights of freelance writers had been infringed when their work was put online without permission or compensation.

Gaynor currently contributes regularly to www.MichNews.com, www.RenewAmerica.com, www.WebCommentary.com, www.PostChronicle.com and www.therealitycheck.org and has contributed to many other websites. He has written extensively on political and religious issues, notably the Terry Schiavo case, the Duke "no rape" case, ACORN and canon law, and appeared as a guest on television and radio. He was acknowledged in Until Proven Innocent, by Stuart Taylor and KC Johnson, and Culture of Corruption, by Michelle Malkin. He appeared on "Your World With Cavuto" to promote an eBay boycott that he initiated and "The World Over With Raymond Arroyo" (EWTN) to discuss the legal implications of the Schiavo case. On October 22, 2008, Gaynor was the first to report that The New York Times had killed an Obama/ACORN expose on which a Times reporter had been working with ACORN whistleblower Anita MonCrief.

Gaynor's email address is gaynormike@aol.com.