Two Steubenville high school football players accused of raping a 16-year-old girl have been found guilty by Ohio judge, according to multiple media reports.
Judge Thomas Lipps ruled Sunday that 17-year-old Trent Mays and 16-year-old Ma'lik Richmond were guilty of attacking the girl while she was unconscious. Both teens were tried as juveniles and the maximum term they can serve in prison will be until they turn 21.
The girl testified on Saturday that she woke up naked in August 2012 after attending a party and was not immediately aware of what had happened to her. She began to piece together what occurred after seeing pictures and videos from that night, which were posted online.
"They kept telling me I was a hassle and they took care of me," she testified. "I thought I could trust him (Mays) until I saw the pictures and video."
Text messages sent by Mays and Richmond during the incident joked that “she couldn’t even move” and “was like a dead body.”
"We’re hitting it for real," Mays bragged to his friend.
The case gained national attention after hackers publicized details of the incident and claimed the crime was being covered up by the football-loving town. Steubenville officials denied "the football team runs the city" and handed the case over to a team of special investigators.
Watch video, uploaded to YouTube by the Associated Press, below:
Note: Updated after publication
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