Maryland prosecutors have decided to drop the Case concerning Jose Montano and Henry Sanchez, both of Hispanic origin, for allegedly abusing a 14-year-old female school girl in a restroom after evidence show their apparent innocence. This was reported by the New York Times
This case attracted attention after it was quoted by White House spokesman Sean Spicer, who pointed out that the immigration policies of the president have been drafted specifically to combat this kind of grave abuse by undocumented immigrants.
Why was the rape charge against the accused dropped suddenly?
The suspects were accused of raping a 14-year old girl inside the Rockville High School bathroom. However, according to John Mc Carthy, the Montgomery county prosecutor, after reviewing security camera recordings and witness accounts, the case was deemed unsustainable for prosecution. However, both of the accused will be charged for child pornography possession.
The White House quickly jumped into the news without fact-checking
White House spokesman Sean Spicer took advantage of this event, which he described as "traumatic, disturbing and horrifying," and further added that "part of the reason the president has given so much importance to illegal immigration and its fight is because of tragedies like this."
He also used this incident to again open the issue concerning the border wall promised by the president; a promised panacea to the problem of illegal immigrants.
However, after the case was dropped, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House deputy spokesperson, defended Sean Spicer saying that he was talking about what was known at the time. Huckabee also added that she would not withdraw any of the comments that were made "without further information" about what happened.
Evidence showed mutual consent rather than sexual assault
According to new evidence, the alleged victim sent explicit messages to both of the accused telling them that she wanted to have sex in school. This contradicted the statement of the victim that she was forcefully seized in the school hallway by Montano and Sanchez and dragged to the bathroom where both men took turns raping her.
According to the lawyers of the accused, there was no instance where the girl expressed any rejection of the sexual acts being done to her and that the encounter was planned and with consent. However, the victim continues to cry out rape, though the evidence is slowly contradicting her statements. For now, it is unknown what the future of the case will be and what is in store for the accused.
