Do-Nothing Bystanders Watched, Filmed Calif. Rape

Two arrests made in vicious 2-hour attack
By Mary Papenfuss,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 27, 2009 5:55 AM CDT
Do-Nothing Bystanders Watched, Filmed Calif. Rape
As many as 15 bystanders watched a 15-year-old California girl being raped on her Homecoming night and did nothing to stop it.    (©storem)

Two arrests have been made in a homecoming night rape of a 15-year-old high school student that was witnessed by as many as 15 do-nothing bystanders. Some may have even participated in the two-hour attack in a San Francisco suburb while others apparently filmed the assault with cell phones, according to police. No one called police or helped the victim. "As people announced over time that this was going on, more people came to see, and some actually participated," said a police official.

The girl was assaulted so severely that she had to be airlifted to a hospital in critical condition, reports KGO. She had left her homecoming dance at a Richmond high school alone before midnight when she was attacked near the school. At least some of her suspected seven attackers are believed to be students or former students of her school, according to police. Investigators are checking YouTube for possible film of the attack.
(More sex assault stories.)

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