Steubenville Rapist Ma'lik Richmond Has Been Released

[The Straight Story]

Ma'lik Richmond, who was found "delinquent" in last March's Steubenville rape case, has been released from an Ohio juvenile detention facility, WTRF reports.

In part of his statement, Richmond's lawyer, Walter Madison, praised his client's courage in the face of the unimaginable hardship (or "hardness," as Madison put it) of being a 16-year-old convicted rapist:

The past sixteen months have been extremely challenging for Ma'Lik and his extended family. At sixteen years old, Ma'Lik and his family endured hardness beyond imagine for any adult yet alone child. He has persevered the hardness and made the most of yet another unfortunate set of circumstances in his life.

There was no mention of the 16-year-old Richmond was sent to jail for raping, nor any hardships she may have faced when, in an "unfortunate set of circumstances," Richmond and his football teammate Trent Mays sexually assaulted her. Richmond and Mays' victim's lawyer, Bob Fitzsimmons, noted this in his statement:

Although everyone hopes convicted criminals are rehabilitated, it is disheartening that this convicted rapist's press release does not make a single reference to the victim and her family - whom he and his co-defendant scarred for life. One would expect to see the defendant publicly apologize for all the pain he caused rather than make statements about himself. Rape is about victims, not defendants. Obviously, the people writing his press release have yet to learn this important lesson.


http://www.thewire.com/national/2014/01/steubenville-rapist-malik-richmond-has-been-released/356707/

[mike_c]

1. that degree of narcissism is unfortunate....

I hope he learned something valuable from the experience, not something destructive. His lawyer doesn't sound like he's learned much more than how to be a mouth piece for dollars.

[uppityperson]

2. What you said. nt

[Dash87]

3. Oh boo hoo. Maybe he shouldn't have raped.

You can tell he's really sorry for what he did.

[Doctor_J]

5. He'll go to real prison at some point

A travesty that he's free, but there is no way he's rehabilitated. He'll be back

[alp227]

6. PZ Myers skewered Richmond's scumbag lawyer

http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2014/01/07/one-of-the-steubenville-rapists-has-been-freed/

He endured, he persevered, he grew, and become more mature and learned — why, raping an unconscious young girl has made Mr Richmond a better fucking person. What a great thing for his character, and the character of any teenager who wants to improve himself.