Madison Brooks death: Judge says 'evidence is clear' as video confirms rape of LSU student
BATON ROGUE, LOUISIANA: Days after attorneys argued it would exonerate them, a judge has ruled that video footage of a drunk sorority member, Madison Brooks, taken by her suspected rapist is damning evidence that a crime did occur. It came hours after an attorney for two of the four suspects claimed it shows the late 19-year-old Louisiana State University student had consented to sex.
Madison Brooks,19, was picked up at a college bar by four men and dropped off at a ride-sharing location at 3 am on Sunday, January 15, when she was hit by a car. Four suspects have been charged with the rape of the 19-year-old student. They have been identified as Kaivon Deondre Washington,18, a 17-year-old male who has not been named due to his age, Everette Lee, 28, and Casen Carver, 18.
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On the night of January 14, Brooks, an Alpha Phi sorority sister, allegedly met her assailants at Baton Rouge's Reggie's Bar. Investigators claim that in the early hours of Sunday, January 15, Brooks was sexually assaulted in a car by the four men, before they dropped her off along a street in a neighborhood close to Pelican Lakes Parkway. A driver then hit the 19-year-old and she died hours later in the hospital, the Daily Mail reported
On Tuesday, Judge Brad Myers told the court that he had watched a video that had been shot by Washington following the alleged assault. He claimed the video did not show the assault and instead showed the suspects laughing 'callously' as she spoke slurred inside the car. Myers remarked, "The evidence to me is clear," adding that it was obvious that a crime had been committed prior to Madison's death.
Washington and the 17-year-old have been charged with third-degree rape. Lee, who is Washington’s uncle, and Carver, 18, are charged with principal to rape, as per Independent. Lawyer Ron Haley, who represents Washington in the case, argued before the court appearance what happened to Madison was a "tragedy but definitely not a crime."
He also claimed that there was an argument and she got out of the car, saying that the men "did not put her off on the side of the road.' But, Myers said that the video proved that there was evidence of a crime against the 19-year-old. Prosecutor Stuart Theiror, at the hearing, said that the state would be seeking upgraded charges of first-degree rape and plan to convene a grand jury in the case.