National criticism on Steubenville rape case prompts website creation

STEUBENVILLE, Ohio - In the rape case involving two Ohio high school football players and a West Virginia teenager, the small city of Steubenville and its officials may have done something unprecedented in the history of police cases. 

On Saturday, city officials announced the creation of a new website, SteubenvilleFacts.org. It's a site the city sponsored to combat any rumors surrounding the investigation of an alleged rape that police said occurred last August. 

A New York Times article directed attention to the small town of 18,440 residents. But the case only recently received national attention after a hacker group, said to target rapists, reportedly leaked a video online in connection to the August investigation that shows a high school teen joking about the alleged rape and the unconscious state of the 16-year-old W.Va. girl involved.

(Click to see a photo gallery from the rally: http://5.wews.com/gA8H3)

Steubenville Police Chief Bill McCafferty acknowledged the video had been seen. 

"Early in the case, during the first week, we were made aware of this incident and we obtained this video. I too, as well as all my officers who investigated this, were appalled by the morally inept statements made," said McCafferty to a crowd of reporters at a Saturday news conference.

The chief went on to say all of the electronic evidence was submitted to special prosecutors of the Ohio Attorney General's Office who decided the charges.

But it was the leaked video, a leaked photo and information spreading across social media websites that has gained the small Ohio town national and negative attention. And it's what became the source for Saturday's protest held outside the Jefferson County Court House in Steubenville.

Saturday's protest was one of two rallies hosted by the hacker group who originally leaked the video. They were joined by hundreds of protesters in and around Steubenville who all called for justice. 

Many of the protesters claimed the lack of adult charges against the two juveniles in this rape case, and the lack of more arrests, is due to a cover-up to protect prized athletes in a football town. 

In response to questions of that nature at the rally, Steubenville City Manager Cathy Davison said, "It's unfortunate that people have responded to rumors instead of the facts, goes back to why the city has held this press conference…that's only the facts to the case, not the emotional side."

The first post of the website, dated Jan. 5, 2013, reads:

This website is sponsored by the City of Steubenville and the Steubenville Police Chief Bill McCafferty. The goal of this site is to disseminate the most accurate information about a recent case involving sexual assault charges pending against two juveniles in Steubenville (Jefferson County Juvenile Court Case Numbers 2012-DL138 and 2012-139). City officials will update the site as new information becomes available.

City leaders know that many people outside Eastern Ohio are interested in this matter and people from other states and countries may not be familiar with some basic facts about the background of the case. This site is not designed to be a forum for how the Juvenile Court ought to rule in this matter.

The site then covers governance, jurisdiction and Ohio Law as it pertains to the case. It provides a timeline of when the crime was first reported and when arrests came. Finally, it includes a section on transparency which reads:

- Steubenville police and other city officials have spoken to members of the news media about this case, when appropriate and permitted, since the beginning. They will continue to do so.

- Ohio public records law provides the public the ability to review nearly the entire work product of the investigators once the case is completed. This will allow anyone, within the confines of the Public Records Act, to scrutinize what occurred between the reporting of the incident and the trial.

- Some public records are now available that may relate to this case. For example, copies of 911 calls and initial incident reports in all cases are available for public review even before the case is complete.

- All Steubenville city employees are ultimately responsible to the City Council. Anyone can attend a City Council meeting to observe or offer public comments. More information is available here: http://www.cityofsteubenville.us/council/meetings.html

Is it enough? 

Many at the Saturday protest said "no" as they continued to call for more arrests and more serious charges.  Trent Mays and Ma'lik Richmond, two suspects in the case, face a trial in juvenile court on Feb. 13.