Teen allegedly sexually assaulted at a concert as people watch and film it.
Posted this in Mass. group but this story is getting national traction now. This really is highlighting the bystander effect...
So long story short I actually had some friends who were at this concert, and one who even posted on Facebook *live* that she saw this happening. She actually was one of the people who did the right thing and tried to get help and alert security, scary thing, none was to be found. She has (smartly IMO) scrubbed her Facebook clean of anything relevant to what happened but has offered to be a witness if needed. I think the thing that concerns me is that so few people reacted in what I would consider the appropriate way, and so many took actions which will change the lives of both these people for ever.
Anyway, here is the Think Progress story...
According to the Sun Chronicle, the alleged assault took place after the girl, who had been drinking, began kissing 18-year-old Sean Murphy of Boston near one of the venue’s concession stands. When Murphy began to drag the girl away from her friends to a different area of the lawn, the girl said she went with him because “she was afraid of what would happen” if she didn’t.
As a crowd formed around what one person described as “a couple having sex on the lawn,” some began taking pictures and videos of the assault while the concert continued in the background. One woman in the crowd decided to ask the girl if she was consenting, and when the girl said no, she pulled Murphy off her. Murphy disappeared into the crowd, but was later caught by police after they quarantined the concert venue looking for a suspect.
On Monday, Murphy pleaded not guilty to allegations of rape in the Attleboro District Court Monday claiming the incident was consensual. Police collected some of the video and images taken of the assault to use as evidence in the impending trial.
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2014/07/30/3465695/a-girl-was-sexual-assaulted-at-a-keith-urban-concert-and-people-watched-and-took-videos/
= new reply since forum marked as read
How could he possibly be a police officer at that age?
