Megan Williams case
The Megan Williams case involves a 20-year-old African American woman from West Virginia, who was kidnapped, raped and tortured by six people, including several members of one family{{cite web|author=Jennifer Dorr|url=http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/11/woman.tortured/index.html?eref=ib_us|title=Torture suspects may face hate crime charges|website=CNN.com|date=2007-09-11|accessdate=2017-01-07}} in a racist attack.
Among other things, the suspects were charged with stabbing Williams, dousing her with hot water, and forcing her to eat rat, dog, and human feces. In addition, the suspects were alleged to have hurled racial slurs at her while doing so. The torture and sexual assault were said to have been carried out for about a week. At the time of Williams' removal from the residence, widely circulated photos of Williams in the hospital showed stab wounds on her legs and her hair seemingly pulled from its roots.
Civil rights leaders, community activists and others asserted that the racial motive made the incident subject to prosecution under hate crimes statutes. Authorities did not initially file hate crime charges in the attack, but prosecutors did not rule out such a move down the road. When pressed on the possibility of such charges, authorities said that they were focused on the charges with the toughest penalties, noting that the maximum sentence for a hate crime was just 10 years. One defendant was convicted of a hate crime in the incident.
In October 2009, Williams recanted many of the accusations, including the accusation that the attack was racially motivated, against five of the defendants. However, she [http://westvirginianews.blogspot.com/2009/07/rape-torture-victim-megan-williams-says.html maintained] that she was held against her will, sexually and physically abused, accusing Bobby Ray Brewster, whom Williams knew and had visited on occasion before the incident, of abuse.{{cite web|url=http://wvgazette.com/News/200910201215 |title=Megan Williams to recant Logan County sex-torture testimony |publisher=Wvgazette.com |date=1969-12-31 |accessdate=2013-03-24 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20091214220615/http://wvgazette.com/News/200910201215 |archivedate=2009-12-14 }} She was not charged with filing false charges.
Background
Williams had a "social relationship" with Bobby Ray Brewster, one of the six initial suspects.{{cite news|first=Jim|last=Roberts|title=Megan Williams Tortured: Black Woman Held, Abused by Six Whites|url=http://www.nationalledger.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi?archive=17&num=16031|publisher=The National Ledger|date=September 13, 2007|accessdate=2007-10-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080225091211/http://www.nationalledger.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi?archive=17&num=16031|archive-date=February 25, 2008|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}} Brewster was previously arrested on July 18, 2008, in connection with a domestic battery charge involving Williams. According to investigators, Williams may have been kidnapped immediately after he was released from jail on August 2, when Williams visited his home to see him.{{cite news|first=Cash |last=Michaels |title=WEST VIRGINIA VICTIM WAS CAPTIVE FOR A MONTH, AUTHORITIES SAY, WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 20-26, 2007 |url=http://wilmingtonjournal.blackpressusa.com/news/Article/Article.asp?NewsID=82613&sID=12 |publisher=The Wilmington Journal |date=September 26, 2007 |accessdate=2007-10-03 }}{{dead link|date=June 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
Megan Williams' account of events and legal case
Williams claimed she was set up to be held by the six suspects under the assumption that she was going to a party. "When I first went up there, a girl I knew named Christa, she took me up there, she said we were going to a party. She said she had to make a run and she would be right back. She didn’t come back."{{cite news|title=One-on-One Interview with West Virginia Race Torture Victim Megan Williams|url=http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/article_3997.shtml|publisher=Final Call News|date=October 9, 2007 }}
Bobby Ray Brewster and five other suspects including his mother, Frankie Lee, 49, Danny Combs, 20, George Messer, 27, Karen Burton, 46, and her daughter Alisha, 23 were all charged with kidnapping, the most serious charge that can carry up to life in prison upon conviction. They were all also charged with at least one count each of first-degree sexual offense, which if convicted, could carry a sentence of up to 35 years in prison.
On October 11, 2007, charges against Karen Burton were sent to a grand jury. Charges included kidnapping, first degree sexual assault, malicious wounding, assault during the commission of a felony and 13 counts of battery.{{cite news|first=Shaya|last=Mohajer|title=Alleged Torture Case Sent to Grand Jury|url=http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5idxqh511E5lHfNvljI2sQ1H52W7gD8S2RJ6O1|agency=Associated Press|date=October 4, 2007|accessdate=2007-10-08|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011044526/http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5idxqh511E5lHfNvljI2sQ1H52W7gD8S2RJ6O1|archivedate=October 11, 2007}} Charges against the other five suspects are expected to reach the grand jury in January.
In February 2008, Alisha Burton and George Messer both pleaded guilty to assault and kidnapping and were sentenced to 10 years each.[http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=35981 Two More Sentenced in Logan Torture Case] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110227172535/http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=35981|date=February 27, 2011}}
On March 13, 2008, Karen Burton, one of the women involved in the attack, was given one 10-year sentence for violation of civil rights and two 2-10 year sentences for assault. She was the only person involved who was charged with a hate crime. Frankie Brewster received 10–25 years for second-degree sexual assault. They had both pleaded guilty in exchange for reduced sentences. Carmen Williams, Megan's mother, expressed frustration that they had not received life sentences, which is the maximum penalty for kidnapping.{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/03/13/woman.tortured.ap/index.html|title=Victim's mom: Maximum sentence not enough|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080313231213/http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/03/13/woman.tortured.ap/index.html|archivedate=March 13, 2008}}
Bobby Brewster pleaded guilty to second-degree sexual assault, conspiracy to commit kidnapping and malicious assault. He was sentenced to 13 to 40 years in prison in July 2008.[http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=41369 Fifth Person Pleads Guilty in Megan Williams Case] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110227172535/http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=41369 |date=February 27, 2011 }} Danny Combs will serve 20 years for conspiracy to commit kidnapping. He pleaded guilty to sexual assault, assault during the commission of a felony, and conspiracy to commit kidnapping or holding hostage in September 2008.[http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=44682 Megan Williams Torture Case Is Over] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110227172535/http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=44682|date=February 27, 2011}}
References
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External links
- [http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-10-30-march-naacp_N.htm NAACP won't back case], usatoday.com, October 30, 2007.
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