Monday January 7, 2013 year: 133 No. 1
the student voice of
The Ohio State University
www.thelantern.com
thelantern OSU responds to Steubenville rape case
sports
PATRICK MAKS Asst. sports editor maks.1@osu.edu
Basketball blues
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The OSU men’s basketball team lost, 74-55, to Illinois Saturday, the program’s worst loss in more than three years.
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Ohio State finds itself a sideshow to an alleged rape that has forever changed an Ohio River-town and garnered national attention in recent weeks. Steubenville, Ohio, which is about 150 miles east of Columbus, is in the spotlight after two 16-yearold Steubenville High School football players, Ma’lik Richmond and Trent Mays, were charged with raping a 16-year-old girl at a party last August. While neither Richmond nor Mays attend the university, OSU has been pulled into the case in light of a video taken from the night of those parties, which features former OSU student and Steubenville High School graduate Michael Nodianos, talking and laughing about the alleged rape for more than 12 minutes. The video, which can be found on YouTube under the title “Michael Nodianos confession #oprollredroll #occupysteubenville Steubenville rape case,” shows Nodianos wearing an OSU T-shirt making analogies that the alleged victim was “deader than” or was “raped harder than.” After the video gained more than 270,000 views and a Facebook group titled “OSU expel Michael Nodianos ‘Rape Crew’ member” garnered more
Nothing in Ohio’s criminal statutes makes it a crime for someone to ridicule a rape victim on a video or otherwise say horrible things about another person. steubenvillefacts.squarespace.com a website set up in an attempt to separate fact from fiction regarding the sexual assault case than 2,600 “likes,” OSU issued a statement Friday addressing the situation in Steubenville and the university’s connection to it. While the university would not comment on the case because of Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) regulations, the school confirmed through its statement that “the student in question” was in attendance at the university “only through Dec. 12,” the last day of OSU’s Fall Semester final examinations. OSU spokeswoman Gayle Saunders would not confirm whether Nodianos is enrolled for Spring Semester or if he left the university. The school is not the only public entity to respond to the flood of information surrounding the still-unraveling case.
A website titled “Steubenville Facts,” which is sponsored by the City of Steubenville and Steubenville Police Department, was created Saturday in an attempt to separate fact from fiction regarding the case. While the site does not address Nodianos by name, it does touch on the viral video in which he plays a part in a post headlined as “Governance, Jurisdiction and Ohio Law.” Though Nodianos does not face criminal charges for his 12-minute commentary, some have argued that he should answer to some semblance of disciplinary measures. The website, however, attempts to dismiss that notion. “Nothing in Ohio’s criminal statutes makes it a crime for someone to ridicule a rape victim on a video or otherwise say horrible things about another person,” the post reads. “Steubenville Police investigators are caring humans who recoil and are repulsed by many of the things they observe during an investigation … they are often frustrated when they emotionally want to hold people accountable for certain detestable behavior but realize that there is no statute that allows a criminal charge to be made.”
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Pink deal in line with new apparel contract liz young Senior Lantern reporter young.1693@osu.edu
Victoria’s Secret Launchs OSU Collection Polaris
Tuttle Easton OSU
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=Victoria’s Secret location
January gems on concert circuit
Victoria’s Secret Pink began selling Ohio State branded merchandise on Dec. 11 at 20 different Victoria’s Secret locations across Ohio including: Polaris Fashion Place, Easton Town Center and the Mall at Tuttle Crossing in the Columbus area.
Our arts editor recommends the best concerts in Columbus during January.
campus
Scarlet and Gray has gone Pink. The recent release of a Victoria’s Secret Pink Ohio State collection has raised questions of how the new Buckeye line fits in with OSU’s exclusive apparel licensing contract. On Nov. 15, OSU announced a 10-year, $97 million deal with apparel companies Fanatics Inc., based in Jacksonville, Fla., and J. America Sportswear, based in Webberville, Mich., giving these companies the exclusive rights to design, marketing, production, retail and distribution of all apparel, according to a university press release. OSU has not released further details surrounding the apparel deal because it is not yet finalized, said Gayle Saunders, university spokeswoman. Saunders said the deal should be finalized in spring. Pink, not affiliated with Fanatics Inc. or J. America Sportswear, began selling OSU-branded merchandise on Dec. 11. The exclusive rights deal was made with some exceptions in mind, said Rick Van Brimmer, director of Trademark and Licensing Services at OSU. There are about six brands that are exempt to the exclusive apparel licenses with Fanatics and J. America, including Nike, Disney, Hello Kitty, Snoopy and Marvel, Van Brimmer said. “(The Pink OSU collection) was in the works before (the exclusive licensing) deal was signed,” Van Brimmer said. Pink representatives contacted OSU in about May or June, Van Brimmer said. “We’ve had conversations with them before but … Les Wexner (was) on the Board (OSU’s Board of Trustees), and that created a situation … There were some issues on their side,” Van Brimmer said.
Students slip, slide on icy No charges in accident that maimed student roads KAYLA BYLER / Design editor
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weather high 33 low 24 partly cloudy
T 41/32 W 44/33 TH 46/45 F 56/47
partly cloudy partly cloudy cloudy showers www.weather.com
Kristen Mitchell Campus editor mitchell.935@osu.edu
Ohio State Police concluded that no criminal charges will be filed in a four-monthlong investigation surrounding a dump truck accident that cost one student his right leg. The Sept. 5 accident took place when first-year student from South Point, Ohio, James Daniel Hughes was riding his bike to class at about 2:45 p.m. near Woodruff Avenue, close to where a dump truck was operating near the entrance of a construction site. According to several witness reports, Hughes was riding his bike quickly by the site when he was hit by a dump truck attempting to reverse out of the area. Several witness statements described a loud popping noise that drew their attention to the truck, and then to a crumpled bicycle beneath it. It appeared that the driver hadn’t realized what happened and began moving again. Several people reported that they yelled “Stop!” to get the driver’s attention. Multiple onlookers reported the incident to emergency services. An officer dispatched to the scene at
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about 2:47 p.m. wrote in his narrative that as he approached the truck he “looked under and could see a male body laying on the ground. His torso was exposed and there was a very large wound in his hip region. His body was laying in a contorted position.” According to the report Hughes was immediately transported to the Wexner Medical Center for care, and since his accident, his lawyer Steve Crandall said he has lost roughly one-third of his body, including his right leg and hip. He has also dealt with a bone infection. The investigation revealed that University Police has not charged anyone involved in the incident, and the investigation is completed. The report, hundreds of pages long, was released almost four months after the incident and includes witness testimonies, officer narratives, information on the vehicles involved and emails from university officials on the incident. University Police collected statements from at least 14 witnesses and more than 10 officers who played a role in the investigation. University Police had requested a copy of Hughes’ AT&T cell phone record, which
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daniel chi / Asst. photo editor
Police officers survey the scene after a Sept. 5 bicycle accident where OSU student James Daniel Hughes was hit by a dump truck.
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