Charges were dropped Thursday against two University of Central Florida students who were accused of gang raping a woman at a frat party.
Jack Ryan Smith (left) and David Anthony Kirk (Orange County Jail)
David Anthony Kirk, 20, and Jack Ryan Smith, 26, were both facing serious jail time after getting arrested back in April for sexual battery.
The Alpha Tau Omega fraternity brothers were at an off-campus party house for a throwdown known as the “Meat Factory” when the alleged assault went down, according to the police report.
The victim claimed that she was drinking heavily when Smith and Kirk took her inside a bedroom and began raping her. She told police that she heard one of them saying “my turn, my turn” as they forced her to perform oral sex and other acts against her will.
Kirk and Smith were arrested a few days later after an ATO member found out about the alleged rape and encouraged the woman to contact authorities.
Prosecutors, however, weren’t presented enough evidence to pursue charges and officially decided to drop the case Thursday. The Orange-Osceola State Attorney’s Office filed a notice, saying it was “not suitable for prosecution,” but provided no other details.
Kirk and Smith had been claiming for weeks that they were innocent and that the alleged victim was just embarrassed because she was caught having sex with two guys.
“I’ve never done anything wrong in my life,” proclaimed Smith during his first court appearance.
Kirk’s attorney, Ken Lewis, has previously said that witnesses came forward during the investigation and debunked the woman’s story, though it’s unclear if this played a role in the state attorney’s decision to drop the charges.
“Justice was served,” Lewis told the Orlando Sentinel. “The State Attorneys Office should be lauded for carefully vetting this case and following the law.”
By Chris Perez
Source: NYPost
