RonPaulMall
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- Jul 7, 2011
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It is also important to note that these were not "innocent" teens. There is no disputing that they took part in the Wilding attack that overwhelmed the park that night. The only question was to the extent to which they participated in one particular assault that was part of that attack. It was a distinction that may have had legal significance, but from a moral standpoint most New Yorkers simply didn't care. That was a huge part of the dynamic that was at play. Even if these kids played no specific role in the rape of that woman, most people still felt the sentence was fair because they were part of the attack that led to the rape. Similar to how if a gang of bank robbers commit a robbery that results in a shooting death of a guard we generally hold them all culpable rather than just the one who pulled the trigger.