A Missouri rape case that was initially dropped, is under investigation again, after the victim said that the accused, a politician's grandson, had spiked her drink.
Daisy Coleman, who is a 16-year old girl from Missouri, said that she was raped in January 2012 when she was just 14 years. The victim accused Matthew Barnett, a football player and a student of Maryville senior, and his friend of spiking her drink and then raping her and her friend. Daisy claims that she and her friend went to meet Barnett and his friends.
Matthew Barnett, who is the grandson of former Missouri state representative Rex Barnett, does not disagree of having sexual intercourse with Coleman but refutes that he raped her.
In Missouri it is not illegal for a 17-year old boy to have sexual intercourse with a 14-year old. However, it is illegal for anyone to have sexual intercourse with someone who was incapacitated.
The victim was taken to the hospital by her mother in January 2012 when she was found drunk and freezing outside her home in Maryville, Missouri. Doctors confirmed that they found signs of sexual intercourse after examining Daisy.
Nodaway County Prosecutor Robert Rice dropped sexual assault charges against Matthew in July 2012 and since then, the news has received attention nationwide. However, Rice recently announced that he has requested for a special prosecutor due to the publicity and media attention the case had received. he said the media has also questioned the integrity of the county's justice system.
Melinda Coleman, Daisy's mother, thinks that the prosecutor should not have dropped the case against Matthew.
However, the justice system also issued a statement to clarify why the case was dropped. "There was insufficient evidence to prove a criminal charge beyond a reasonable doubt. The state's witnesses refused to cooperate and invoked their Fifth Amendment privilege to not testify," said a statement from the Nodaway County Prosecuting Attorney's office.
