Published: November 03, 2009 01:24 am      

Williams saga must be further investigated

Two years ago a shocking, distressing story was reported in southern West Virginia. A young African-American woman said she had been held captive for days by seven white men and women. They tortured her and sexually assaulted her, the woman said. At least one of them framed his abuse in racist terms, she added.

All seven people accused by the woman pleaded guilty of various crimes. Six are in prison; the seventh admitted only to a misdemeanor crime and served no time in jail.

Now the woman, Megan Williams, says she made it all up.

Though nearly all news media outlets shield the identities of sexual assault victims, Williams and her now-deceased mother, then of Logan County, insisted on publicity. Some national civil rights leaders came to West Virginia to help her, insisting that civil rights charges should be filed in her case.

In the end, local officials managed to use other types of charges to put the accused behind bars.

Williams now lives in Columbus. There, last month, her attorney told reporters that she wants to recant her claims against the seven people. He told one journalist that Williams filed the charges “in retaliation because she was having a relationship” with one of those she accused.

Where will the Williams story go from here? We don’t know.

But we agree with former Logan County Prosecuting Attorney Brian Abraham, who told reporters last week that he is confident those he sent to prison were guilty of the crimes with which they were charged. Abraham explained that authorities had physical evidence in addition to the defendants’ confessions.

To their credit, some of those whose voices were most strident in pointing out the racist aspects of the crimes committed against Williams now recognize that the situation is much more complex. Williams’ limited mental capacity and the frequency with which she changed her story have been noted. The Rev. Al Sharpton, who was among Williams’ champions, has written to the new Logan County prosecutor asking for a new investigation. “If Ms. Williams has, in fact, fabricated her story, then I urge your office to vindicate any wrongfully convicted individuals,” Sharpton wrote.

An investigation of the case indeed should be mounted — but it should include more than the guilt or innocence of those sent to prison. More should be known about whether Williams was manipulated — as some have said — by her late mother and national celebrities interested as much in profit and exposure for themselves as in justice. There have been accusations that Williams never benefited from thousands of dollars donated to her after the assaults.

Some national figures accused West Virginians of trying to cover up racism by using generic criminal charges instead of civil rights accusations in most of the assault cases. Now it seems that prosecutors were right in their strategy — which put six people in prison.

Throughout the episode, the NAACP in Logan and Boone counties has been a voice of reason. Last week, that chapter’s president, the Rev. Audie Murphy, had this advice: “We didn’t rush to judgment then, and we’re not rushing to judgment now.”

We agree whole-heartedly. Again, however, the Williams saga should be investigated to answer questions about whether she was manipulated and, perhaps, mistreated by some who claimed to be helping her. More needs to be known, in short, about whether the true focus of many involved was Williams’ welfare — or their own agendas.

— The Intelligencer

This editorial does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Times West Virginian editorial board.