Well, if you want more details you can throw "Elizabeth Daly" into your favorite search engine for news sites. From this article it seems that the first person to approach was actually the woman. This article contains the interesting detail that the women were on edge after having just attended a "Take Back the Night" vigil where they listened to the stories of several sexual assault victims before hand.

Interesting. I've seen the video linked before, but I didn't realize is was the same ABC idiots as in this story.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=pbzUH90Sm0E

Something tells me his charges won't be dropped...

WTF did I just watch? Jesus.

So Phantom is right. We don't know what happened and he's brought some very good points. I haven't come across an article that laid out a clear timeline. But it seems that the AG in the case agreed that the girl's recount of what happened was factually correct. So, hopefully more facts are laid out.

The victim of the assault may very well not have seen the woman.

Actually, if you read other sources such as the first one I posted earlier, the woman seems to be the one to approach Daly first.

Another interesting point I saw is in a blog entry that someone posted (that I can't find again) that states that all the publicly available details indicate that Daly followed the exact procedure that law enforcement personnel recommend when a woman is confronted by a stranger in order to avoid assault.

The victim of the assault may very well not have seen the woman.

Actually, if you read other sources such as the first one I posted earlier, the woman seems to be the one to approach Daly first.

Another interesting point I saw is in a blog entry that someone posted (that I can't find again) that states that all the publicly available details indicate that Daly followed the exact procedure that law enforcement personnel recommend when a woman is confronted by a stranger in order to avoid assault.

The second point very strongly suggests that she felt being about to be assaulted, do you not think so? Why would she apply anti-assault techniques otherwise? Surely you're not doing this if you are in your comfort zone.

I read that other source, but it's irrelevant who approached the young woman first. Not only is it conceivable (rare, unlikely, but conceivable) that a woman assists a man in a violent crime or even commits one herself. Although upwards of 90% of violent crimes are done by men, this still leaves a large enough share in which women are the felons, and in not few of these cases, women assist their spouse. A woman approaching and talking to you (distracting the target?) while from the corner of your eyes, 3 or 4 men are moving in the dark surely doesn't help making the situation more relaxed.

But more importantly, the entire act of approaching the young woman was not justified as I've pointed out earlier. Since she may legally buy and possess alcohol given instructions by her parents even as a minor (and this is something the police cannot know without having asked the parents, and they obviously cannot have asked when pressing hard a "random" young woman in the street of whom they do not even know the name), there is no base for suspecting a felony in the first place.

It is thus equally irrelevant whether the woman was below 21 years of age, and even assuming she had bought alcohol (which was very evidently not the case, unless police is entirely dyslectic or so blind they can't decipher the 5'' tall name of a well-known water brand), there is no indication of a felony, no proof of guilt, and not even an appearance.

If you're caught with bloody hands and a knife in your hands bent over a dead body, this does not prove that you murdered that person. However, there is undeniably a strong appearance which comes close to circumstantial evidence, so this would warrant an arrest (including drawing and pointing a gun), but it would as such not justify shooting the person, nor would (should) it lead to a conviction per se.

On the other hand, if your only "verdict" is coming out of a shop with a few bottles of water under your arm, this is an entirely different situation. Even if they're bottles of beer (which they weren't). Maybe you're a bit young, you could be 20 or 22. OK, but so what, there's the delivery-for-parants law in Virginia, and whoever thinks you might be too young really doesn't know (also, if you bought alcohol, it is reasonable to expect that the shopkeeper verified your ID). All in all, this doesn't warrant anything. The appearance and circumstantial evidence is "normal".

You are thus by definition innocent, and you have the right to be treated as such. And that is really all that matters.

You have the right to go where you want, the right to remain undisturbed. Nobody shall stop you, or even point a gun at you.

But more importantly, the entire act of approaching the young woman was not justified as I've pointed out earlier.

Police are allowed to approach people and ask them questions. You are likewise allowed to not answer them. If you flee from a police officer who is trying to ask you questions you can be charged with obstruction.

It was just a shitty situation where everybody saw every action in it's worst possible light and made the legal decisions that happened to escalate the situation the most from what I've read.

Samoth...

http://www.virginiarules.org/virginia-rules/alcohol-tobacco

So... I don't know where you read about the parental puchase thing, but the government of Virginia seems to disagree.

http://www.aclu.org/drug-law-reform-immigrants-rights-racial-justice/know-your-rights-what-do-if-you

The police can stop people and ask questions, there's nothing at all unusual about that (and she would have the right to refuse to answer them). Reasonable suspicion is a pretty well-documented idea. Age is difficult to tell, so if they just gave everyone who looked around 20-ish a pass, they wouldn't be enforcing the law, which is the raison d'etre for law enforcement. If police didn't stop possible crimes in progress just because there was some nominal chance that they weren't actually crimes they wouldn't really be doing their jobs. "I guess he knows the owner, who I guess wanted his stereo ripped from his car dashboard at 3am".

If they just arrested her the second they saw her, that would be a problem, but they didn't. It was dark and she was probably rushing, or it could have been in a bag or any number of million reasons they couldn't tell it was just water. I sure can't recognize the brand, and it looks like it could be wine coolers or some other alcohol (but not really beer). Plus, since she was jumpy from all the sexual assault information she got, she might have been acting suspiciously (ie, rushing to her car faster than normal for a regular grocery stop, looking around a lot.)

It was just a shitty situation where everybody saw every action in it's worst possible light and made the legal decisions that happened to escalate the situation the most from what I've read.

Exactly.

I read that other source, but it's irrelevant who approached the young woman first.

a) It's hard to take your arguments seriously if you admit to saying things you know not to be true as the basis for those arguments. Lying to present a point often has the effect of making your side look desperate and irrational. b) It's actually possible to do things like have an open mind, withhold judgement or consider both sides of an argument. Just because someone makes a post in a thread doesn't mean that they've automatically taken sides on an issue. Just because someone identifies something you've said as incorrect doesn't mean that everything they've said is meant as a disagreement. Critical thinking skills, remember? You seem to think that I meant following anti-assault guidelines as an argument against your point of view when I was merely pointing out an interesting thing that someone else said somewhere else. You'd come across as much more reasonable and rational if you didn't have this knee jerk reaction to lash out.

Police are allowed to approach people and ask them questions. You are likewise allowed to not answer them. If you flee from a police officer who is trying to ask you questions you can be charged with obstruction.

Yes, but you are also perfectly allowed to flee from or resist "police" that isn't recognizable as such and who tries to "stop" you (rob you) under a false premise. If three guys who look like gang members knock at your door and shout "Police! Open!", do you open the door, or do you get your shotgun out of the closet? If a hobo in the subway who "works for the NSA" wants to confiscate your laptop because you are an alleged spy, do you give him your laptop?

Complying with "police" presumes plausibility. If someone who doesn't look like police comes at you in a dark street for an alleged crime that you know you didn't commit, they probably are not police, and it's probably a good idea to either flee or tazer them.

So... I don't know where you read about the parental puchase thing, but the government of Virginia seems to disagree.

The NIH says so: ""making a delivery of alcoholic beverages by order of his parent". To me this reads like you're allowed to carry alcohol in Virginia if your parents told you to go and get some, no matter how old you are.

Now, that girl might have bought alcohol without her parents' knowlegde, or she might have been carrying a written permit that she had shown to the shopkeeper, or the shopkeeper might just sell her alcohol because she comes twice per week on her parents' order.

We cannot know this, and neither could the police that evening (well, we do know now, because charges were dropped, so she demonstrably had nothing illegal, including alcohol, on her).

Reasonable suspicion is a pretty well-documented idea.

That's exactly what I was saying earlier. But "reasonable" is the important detail.

If gunshots and cries are being heard and you leave a bank wearing a black mask a moment later, it is reasonable to suspect that you're committing a crime. In this situation, it is even justified to point a gun at you. Most people coming out of banks do not wear black masks, and usually there are no gunshots and cries.

If a group of teenagers or "youngish people" is sitting at the beach with no "obviously adult" people around and they're being loud, uninhibited, and drinking alcohol, it is reasonable to suspect that they might be under age and might not have their parents' permission, so it's justifiable to ask for an ID to verify their age.

If you're a mean looking guy with a beard and wearing dark sunglasses, and the child next to you is crying "Help me, help me", it is reasonable to stop your car under the assumption of kidnapping (but it's not justifiable to shoot you down, the child might be doing a prank).

If the same child is just sitting next to you or maybe asking "Daddy, can we have some icecream?" it is not reasonable to stop your car, even if you have a beard and wear sunglasses, or if you look like Denny Trejo.

If you come out of a shop, the reasonable assumption is that whatever you bought in that shop is legitimate. Millions of people come out of shops every day, and most of them bought legal things legitimately.

And it is not only reasonable, the presumption of innocence is the base of the entire legal system. If you turn the presumption of innocence into a presumption of guilt, the legal system becomes a mockery.

Police like to see themselves as "the law" (or above the law) and so often ignore this petty detail. Alas, they are not "the law" and they do not make "the law", they are to serve it. If you come out of a shop and there's nothing else to it (no gunshots, no blood, no broken glass, no alarm, no people running for their lives), it's nobody's fucking business who you are, how old you are, or what you're carrying. The assumption is first and foremost that you're innocent.

they wouldn't be enforcing the law, which is the raison d'etre for law enforcement

If your law enforcement has "SS" tattooed on their arms in Arian runes, yes. Otherwise no. Most people, police included, forget what the police is about and what their duty is. Their duty is to serve and protect the citizens (US police even have this written on their badges). Yes, this includes making sure that people follow the law. After all, the law, too, is to serve the people.

However, their duty is not to harrass and oppress people, nor to suspect and "criminalize" people when according to the situation, it is a perfectly reasonable assumption that they're not doing anything wrong.

It's hard to take your arguments seriously if you admit to saying things you know not to be true as the basis for those arguments. Lying to present a point often has the effect of making your side look desperate and irrational

How is it lying or admitting to know points are not true if I say I've read that other article? The article states that the police spokesman (Carol Whateverhername) said the female officer was the first to approach the girl. Where is a truth in this? This is the spokeman's (spokewoman's -- does that exist in English?) story, and of course according to her the police did everything right, what else. You certainly don't expect the police spokesmen to make a press statement like "Yeah, sorry, our guys were a bit rough when they gangbanged her".

The female officer might as well not have been the first to approach the girl, and the girl might not have seen her at all, but only men rushing at her. She may have been pressed into staying quiet on the details on the premise that otherwise some cocaine was "found" in her car, but charges would be dropped if she played along. We simply don't know.

All we know is that the girl was arrested and released with charges dropped, which is a strong indication that she was entirely innocent and the cops couldn't charge her with anything even after trying hard to find something (questioning and searching her, and presumably searching the car too).

But my point is that it's irrelevant what Carol the Spokesman said or even what actually happened during this manueuver, since the entire manueuver was unjustified from the beginning.

You seem to think that I meant following anti-assault guidelines as an argument against your point of view when I was merely pointing out an interesting thing that someone else said somewhere else.

Not at all, I interpreted this as something you stated, which indeed showed rather agreement from your sie than disagreement. Why on earth would you use something that is obviously an argument for the girl feeling ambushed/assaulted if your opinion was the opposite?

I may come over as a bit "excentric" sometimes, but hey, please don't take me for a complete fool

Yes, but you are also perfectly allowed to flee from or resist "police" that isn't recognizable as such and who tries to "stop" you (rob you) under a false premise. If three guys who look like gang members knock at your door and shout "Police! Open!", do you open the door, or do you get your shotgun out of the closet? If a hobo in the subway who "works for the NSA" wants to confiscate your laptop because you are an alleged spy, do you give him your laptop?

You are making a lot of assumptions about the situation here. Your two fictional situations aren't even remotely the same as an officer showing their badge and detaining you for questioning, which police officers are allowed to do.

IANAL, but I would strongly advise anybody reading this not to take this advice. If a police officer identifies themselves and asks you to stop, if you flee you are breaking the law.

If a police officer identifies themselves and asks you to stop, if you flee you are breaking the law.

I don't know dude, if someone walked up to my car and started breaking the windows and pulling out their handgun, I think I'd get the hell away even if they could produce a badge. Screw the law, I'd rather stay alive and defend my case rather than end up a statistic shot down by an overzealous cop (let's face it - it does happen).

If the situation really happened as described it was an unacceptable show of force and I don't blame the girl for getting the hell away. I mean, six people, in civilian clothing, with handheld guns and other weapons, walking towards you, at night? For all you know they are out there to steal your car and mug you, or worse. At least the first thought to my mind would not be "hey, those are police officers. I'm going to wait till they get here and greet them warmly". Even the most well-meaning person will not respond well to being threatened or put in an ambiguous situation where they feel there is a chance they may be in danger.

Again, as said by someone in this thread (did not read it all), the police exists to protect citizens against danger and enforce order on some level. It is not there to terrorize people and beat them into submission. I wouldn't be surprised if a few policemen found their line of work just so they could fulfill their perverted fantasies of domination by abusing the power society has entrusted to them.

I think the question here, is what are we arguing about? It's obvious the official report is going to be partly distorted and manipulated. All news is. But somehow I don't think this would have made the headlines if those police officers actually walked over to that girl, identified themselves in a civilized manner and asked to see her purchase. That is perfectly routine and I don't think anyone would fundamentally object to complying unless the cop was being very suspicious. It's clear something much different happened this time, and given that charges were dropped I'm inclined to think the college students didn't actually do anything illegal. But without any further information to go on this is purely speculation.

It's all about what really happened, anyway. It's difficult to predict how a given individual will react to such and such behavior, it's very subtle and you really have to know both sides of the story to accurately make up an informed opinion. I would expect people to make the right choice on average, though. There are ways to approach people for information without freaking them out, the one depicted in the report wasn't one of them, period.

As for the "iced tea" video, well, even if the so-called officer was being unreasonably obnoxious with his apparent need to perform an extensive molecular analysis of the liquid in question, I think the other guy was being rather dumb showing him the can's label multiple times, obviously that's not what the cop wanted. How hard was it to hand him the can, let him check and embarass himself? That said I've never lived in the USA so I don't know how this is handled over there, do people routinely steal soda cans by pretending to be policemen? Or maybe it's a principle thing, I don't know.. just kind of weird how the two interacted. Feels kind of scripted and fake in fact.