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Duke Lacrosse rape accuser admits lie and apologizes to players 18 years later

Duke Lacrosse rape accuser admits lie and apologizes to players 18 years later

Crystal Mangum has publicly admitted for the first time that she falsely accused three Duke lacrosse players of raping her in 2006.

In an interview posted Wednesday from a North Carolina prison where she is serving time for an unrelated second-degree murder conviction, Mangum admitted she lied about players sexually assaulting her at a team party where she worked like a stripper. She continued to support the allegations in a 2008 book after the case was thrown out in 2007.

“I testified falsely against them saying they raped me when they didn’t, and that was wrong, and I betrayed the trust of a lot of people who believed in me,” Mangum told Katerena DePasquale about “Let’s talk to Kat.

Mangum said he “made up a story that wasn’t true because I wanted validation from people and not from God.”

“I hope they can forgive me,” she said of the three men.

More than 18 years after the Duke lacrosse allegations, Crystal Mangum admits she made it all up.
“I testified falsely against (the lacrosse players) saying they raped me when they didn’t. . . . I made up a story that wasn’t true. . . . I hope they can forgive me.” pic.twitter.com/3yMjbQTQXH

— KC Johnson (@kcjohnson9) December 12, 2024

Mangum revealed his intention to come clean after an interview request from DePasquale, the Duke Chronicle reported.

“It was in my heart to make a public apology regarding the Duke lacrosse case,” Mangum wrote to her in a letter seen by Chronicle. “I actually lied to the public, my family, friends and God about the incident, and I’m not proud of it.”

She repeatedly referred to the men as her “brothers” in the interview and said she “loved them”.

Mangum at a press conference to promote his book in 2008.
Mangum at a press conference to promote his book in 2008.

Raleigh News & Observer via Getty Images

Her original allegations ignited the nation’s attention in part because of the racial dynamics. Mangum is black, while the falsely named attackers are white and attended an elite university.

As the case unraveled, the charges were dismissed in April 2007. Mangum was not charged with perjury and can no longer be prosecuted due to the statute of limitations, noted the New York Post.

The players sued the university over its response to the allegations and reached a settlement for apparently 20 million dollars a piece.

Complaints of sexual assault reported are found to be false between 2% and 10% of the timeaccording to a report by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, while more than 60% of sexual assault cases are never reported to the authorities.