Central Park 5

    When a tragedy like the assault and rape of Trisha Meili happens a community, be it a small city or large one like New York City, the victim will certainly feel violated and likely astounded that a person can have such disregard for human life. When a crime like this takes place and the media outcry begins, the police seem to be between a rock and a hard place. They are put under immense pressure to find the perpetrators and find them quickly. With that being said, the detectives working the case of Trisha Meili seemed to have lucked out due to the fact that the two suspects were arrested that night in Central Park.

Whenever I watch a documentary, I try to place myself on both sides of the argument the arrest, or at least questioning of the young men, is certainly a logical choice. A group of young men, upwards of twenty five of them, were not only reported but also admitted to causing all sorts of trouble in Central Park around the same time of the assault and rape of Trisha Meili. I feel this is fine and I also understand the reasoning for the questioning of these young men. However, from that point on, things seem to get a bit murky.

           Once the questioning begins and the parents are brought in, those hours upon hours of being grilled by the detectives bothers me. Why didn’t these parents contact an attorney? I understand the cops may have said “he’s not a suspect” or any other type of statement to make these parents think their children were not in trouble.  However, after hours and hours of integration, I do not understand why these parents didn’t step in and say enough. That’s something that seemed to bother me most. Another thing that bothered me was the fact that the mayor was actually on camera saying stating that the community no longer had to call the suspects “suspects.” This is basically insinuating that these men are guilty, therefore making it even harder to get a fair trial. The heartbreaking thing about this case from what I have watched so far is not only the one victim Trisha Meili, but also the five other teens that seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. The assault and rape of this poor woman is an absolute atrocity. However, the fact that there was not a complete investigation and just throwing the crime on these teens is also terrible.