Good Kids echoes the events that occurred in Steubenville, Ohio on the night of August 11, 2012. Those events are ever-present due to their virtual documentation in the form of tweets, texts, videos, and photographs.
On August 11, 2012, a 16 year old woman from West Virginia attended a party in Steubenville. The next day, she woke up unable to remember much about the evening. She learned what happened through social media.
Here's what it looks like happened. The young woman appeared to be heavily intoxicated and/or drugged; she lost consciousness and vomited throughout the evening. A number of young men at the party, including members of the Big Red football team, transported the young woman from party to party as she vomited and was unresponsive when asked questions. Over the course of the night, the woman lay naked on sidewalks, was digitally penetrated ("fingered"), and was photographed being carried naked by two men, one holding her feet, the other holding her hands, and she dangling in between. Allusions were made to oral sex and rape by multiple different young men.
As she became aware of the events of the evening courtesy of tweets, photographs, and videos, she and her parents went to the police two days later. While the physical evidence of rape or sexual assault was scant, evidence from the evening remained plentiful on social media and in text messages.
The young woman reportedly wished to forget the evening, but her case went viral and no one could stop its spread. Blogger Alexandria Goddard and the activist hacker group Anonymous put pressure on Steubenville. Goddard uncovered and reposted the social media evidence and Anonymous threatened to release personal information if Steubenville failed to fully investigate the sexual assault.
On August 11, 2012, a 16 year old woman from West Virginia attended a party in Steubenville. The next day, she woke up unable to remember much about the evening. She learned what happened through social media.
Here's what it looks like happened. The young woman appeared to be heavily intoxicated and/or drugged; she lost consciousness and vomited throughout the evening. A number of young men at the party, including members of the Big Red football team, transported the young woman from party to party as she vomited and was unresponsive when asked questions. Over the course of the night, the woman lay naked on sidewalks, was digitally penetrated ("fingered"), and was photographed being carried naked by two men, one holding her feet, the other holding her hands, and she dangling in between. Allusions were made to oral sex and rape by multiple different young men.
As she became aware of the events of the evening courtesy of tweets, photographs, and videos, she and her parents went to the police two days later. While the physical evidence of rape or sexual assault was scant, evidence from the evening remained plentiful on social media and in text messages.
The young woman reportedly wished to forget the evening, but her case went viral and no one could stop its spread. Blogger Alexandria Goddard and the activist hacker group Anonymous put pressure on Steubenville. Goddard uncovered and reposted the social media evidence and Anonymous threatened to release personal information if Steubenville failed to fully investigate the sexual assault.
Two men were tried in juvenile court. 16-year-old Ma'lik Richmond and 17-year-old Trent Mays were found "deliquent, the juvenile equivalent of being found guilty" of penetrating the 16 year old woman with their fingers. Mays was further charged for "using a minor in nudity oriented materials for taking and distributing photographs of the victim in states of undress." Richmond was sentenced one year in juvenile detention and Mays received two years. (http://www.cbsnews.com/news/steubenville-rape-trial-verdict-judge-finds-both-teens-guilty-of-raping-16-year-old-girl/).