The Brian Banks Story
In 2002, Brian Banks was on top of the world. He was a star linebacker at Long Beach Polytechnic High School and had just committed to a scholarship to play for the University of Southern California, with dreams of one day playing in the NFL.
All that came crashing down in the course of one afternoon. He had been kissing and joking around with Wanetta Gibson, an old friend of his, at school. It was nothing more than a bit of fun between friends, but despite that, the campus was soon surrounded by police and Banks was taken into custody.
He had been accused of rape.
Afraid and confused, the then 17-year-old was sentenced to 6 years in prison for sexually assaulting Gibson, despite there being no evidence or investigation into the crime. Banks ultimately spent just over 5 years in prison after being released on parole and registering as a sex offender. Not only was he forced to wrongfully carry a label for a crime that never happened, but he had all but lost any chance he had at a football career after wasting some of his most important years in prison. After being released, he lived his life aimlessly for years, until one day, an opportunity appeared that would change his life forever.
He had received a Facebook friend request from Wanetta Gibson - the same woman who had falsely accused him of rape all those years ago.
He immediately seized the opportunity, setting up a meeting with Gibson and a private investigator. During that meeting, a secret audio recording device was planted, and Gibson confessed on record to fabricating her accusation. Finally, after over a decade of being weighed down by a crime he never committed, Brian Banks was free.
After that, it was all uphill for the former convict. Less than a year after his name was cleared, Banks was signed by the Atlanta Falcons. His lifelong dream had finally become a reality. Now, in 2018, Banks works for the California Innocence Project, helping them clear the names of other innocents accused of crimes like himself.
Although Banks was able to get his fairytale ending, there are many people in the world who find themselves in the exact same situation that he did - falsely accused and convicted of a crime they never committed, and having their lives ruined because of it.
These cases are why the justice system is often so hesitant to accuse people of crimes without evidence. So although it can be frustrating when people such as the people who raped Daisy Coleman are able to escape punishment, it is important to remember that the justice system must have an objective process in order to avoid ruining the lives of people like Brian Banks.
But what is most important of all is to keep an open mind. Avoid flat out rejecting someone's claim of rape, but also keep yourself from blindly accepting a claim as well, as both of these attitudes can ruin the lives of others. Instead, approach these issues with a healthy amount of skepticism, so that those who are guilty get the punishment they deserve, but those who are innocent are not wrongfully condemned.
Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMpy8V236Yo
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/blindsided-the-exoneration-of-brian-banks/
https://www.dailynews.com/2012/06/10/how-did-the-justice-system-fail-brian-banks/
http://articles.latimes.com/2012/may/25/local/la-me-rape-dismiss-20120525
https://californiainnocenceproject.org/read-their-stories/brian-banks/
https://sports.yahoo.com/news/exonerated-of-rape--brian-banks-realizing-nfl-dream-%E2%80%93-in-different-capacity-005927279-nfl.html
All that came crashing down in the course of one afternoon. He had been kissing and joking around with Wanetta Gibson, an old friend of his, at school. It was nothing more than a bit of fun between friends, but despite that, the campus was soon surrounded by police and Banks was taken into custody.
He had been accused of rape.
Afraid and confused, the then 17-year-old was sentenced to 6 years in prison for sexually assaulting Gibson, despite there being no evidence or investigation into the crime. Banks ultimately spent just over 5 years in prison after being released on parole and registering as a sex offender. Not only was he forced to wrongfully carry a label for a crime that never happened, but he had all but lost any chance he had at a football career after wasting some of his most important years in prison. After being released, he lived his life aimlessly for years, until one day, an opportunity appeared that would change his life forever.
He had received a Facebook friend request from Wanetta Gibson - the same woman who had falsely accused him of rape all those years ago.
He immediately seized the opportunity, setting up a meeting with Gibson and a private investigator. During that meeting, a secret audio recording device was planted, and Gibson confessed on record to fabricating her accusation. Finally, after over a decade of being weighed down by a crime he never committed, Brian Banks was free.
After that, it was all uphill for the former convict. Less than a year after his name was cleared, Banks was signed by the Atlanta Falcons. His lifelong dream had finally become a reality. Now, in 2018, Banks works for the California Innocence Project, helping them clear the names of other innocents accused of crimes like himself.
Although Banks was able to get his fairytale ending, there are many people in the world who find themselves in the exact same situation that he did - falsely accused and convicted of a crime they never committed, and having their lives ruined because of it.
These cases are why the justice system is often so hesitant to accuse people of crimes without evidence. So although it can be frustrating when people such as the people who raped Daisy Coleman are able to escape punishment, it is important to remember that the justice system must have an objective process in order to avoid ruining the lives of people like Brian Banks.
But what is most important of all is to keep an open mind. Avoid flat out rejecting someone's claim of rape, but also keep yourself from blindly accepting a claim as well, as both of these attitudes can ruin the lives of others. Instead, approach these issues with a healthy amount of skepticism, so that those who are guilty get the punishment they deserve, but those who are innocent are not wrongfully condemned.
Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMpy8V236Yo
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/blindsided-the-exoneration-of-brian-banks/
https://www.dailynews.com/2012/06/10/how-did-the-justice-system-fail-brian-banks/
http://articles.latimes.com/2012/may/25/local/la-me-rape-dismiss-20120525
https://californiainnocenceproject.org/read-their-stories/brian-banks/
https://sports.yahoo.com/news/exonerated-of-rape--brian-banks-realizing-nfl-dream-%E2%80%93-in-different-capacity-005927279-nfl.html
Did Banks plead guilty or was he convicted based on the original confession?
ReplyDeleteDid Brian Banks plead guilty to a crime he did not commit? Or did he just get convicted based on a false confession?
ReplyDeleteI feel like the wording in this piece is very inflammatory. I agree that it is important to look at the facts but it is also very important to trust women when they say they are raped. This piece uses an availability heuristic to bias the audience. (An availability heuristic is when one estimates the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind, we presume such events are common). By espousing a greater degree of skepticism I feel like you are perpetuating a cycle that makes it increasingly harder for women to find justice. Overall, this piece seems to convey the idea that the amount of false rape accusations is equivalent to the amount of properly prosecuted rape cases.
ReplyDelete