ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, April 11, 1996 TAG: 9604110052
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JAN VERTEFEUILLE STAFF WRITER
NOTE: Lede
A Montgomery County grand jury declined to indict two Virginia Tech football players Wednesday after hearing the results of a state police investigation of Christy Brzonkala's rape allegations.
The grand jury was convened Wednesday morning especially to hear the state police findings. Those findings are not public, and grand jury proceedings are secret.
State police gave their report to Commonwealth's Attorney Phil Keith, who could have decided to bring charges himself. Instead, he turned the decision over to the grand jury.
"It was a close call whether or not there was probable cause," so he decided to let an independent body judge whether it was more likely than not that Brzonkala was raped, Keith said. "As far as guilt or innocence, it never got to that point."
Brzonkala and the players - Tony Morrison and James Crawford - declined invitations to testify before the grand jury and Keith chose not to subpoena them.
The grand jury's decision does not affect Brzonkala's federal lawsuit against Virginia Tech, the two players and one of their friends, Cornell Brown.
Morrison's attorney said the judge would decide whether a federal jury hearing the civil case could learn about the grand jury's decision.
Brzonkala, now a student at George Mason University, says Morrison and Crawford raped her in their dorm room in September 1994. Her suit claims Brown was in the dormitory suite during the attack and that he provided a false alibi for Crawford during a campus judicial board hearing.
Morrison's and Crawford's attorneys characterized the grand jury's decision as vindication for their clients, who have maintained their innocence.
"When a grand jury refuses to indict, it means there's no probable cause to believe a crime was committed," said Morrison's attorney, David Paxton. "It's a pretty good indication of what people think of the allegations - which is not a whole lot."
This case "probably had more investigating than 99 percent of rape investigations," said Joe Painter, who represents Crawford. "Do you know how unusual it is for a grand jury not to indict when an officer testifies?"
State police investigated for almost two months at the request of Virginia Attorney General Jim Gilmore.
Brzonkala's attorney, Eileen Wagner of Richmond, said she had not expected indictments. Sexual assault cases are uniquely difficult to try, she said, and with a time lapse of 18 months between the incident and the criminal investigation, it wasn't likely charges would be brought.
"I'm gratified that Keith thought the decision was close enough to refer to the grand jury," she said.
Morrison's father, Jim, a Chesapeake teacher, said, "It is good news, but we still have a lot in front of us."
Brzonkala did not seek criminal charges or tell anyone about the incident for several months. Wagner said Brzonkala took her case to Tech's internal judicial system because she felt at the time she had no alternative, as she hadn't had a medical exam afterward and had no physical evidence.
Crawford, who had an alibi, was not disciplined. A Tech judicial panel initially found Morrison guilty of sexual misconduct and suspended him for two semesters. When he appealed, a second panel found him guilty only of using abusive language, but upheld the suspension. The university provost decided to reduce his punishment to probation and one hour of counseling instead.
When Brzonkala learned Morrison would return to campus, she filed suit, claiming Tech gave preferential treatment to him as a football player and discriminated against her. She is also seeking damages from the three players under the untested Violence Against Women Act of 1994, which allows victims of gender-motivated crime to sue their attackers.
Attorney General Gilmore volunteered the state police's services after she filed the highly publicized suit in December.
The Violence Against Women Act does not require a criminal conviction for a victim to bring suit.
"That's why we have the Violence Against Women Act," Wagner said. "With sexual assaults, an awful lot fall through the cracks. One of the things Congress wanted to do [with the law] was close some of those cracks. They wanted people to know if the criminal system can't make a case, they have another" avenue through civil court.
But Wagner praised the state police investigation as "objective, humane, fair and sensitive" and said Keith's office appeared to take the case seriously.
Painter questioned Brzonkala's absence before the grand jury.
"Why didn't she testify - if her whole purpose [in filing suit] is so this doesn't happen to other women?" he asked. "She's told her story to everyone else in the world."
Wagner said she and Brzonkala discussed whether her testifying would help, but decided that "she felt confident in what she told" the state police.
Painter said he believed the rape allegations were based on racism. Brzonkala is white and the three players are black.
"Do you really believe if these were white athletes, there'd be all this hoopla? I don't," he said. "Who are you more likely to believe if someone's going to scream rape - black guys or white guys?"
Painter, who is white, said he has felt this case was racially motivated from the start, but refrained from speaking out while the criminal investigation was being conducted.
Wagner said she was "mystified" by Painter's characterization of what she sees as a male-female issue.
"The facts show the problem was a male member of an all-male athletic team who was given preferential treatment over a female."
Bob Fleming of Landmark News Service contributed information to this story.
LENGTH: Long : 106 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Tony Morrison\Still a defendant. color.by CNB