Four individuals are facing rape charges after a Louisiana State University sorority student was struck by an oncoming vehicle while standing in the middle of a Baton Rouge street earlier this month.
The crash happened on Burbank Drive at Pelican Lakes Parkway around 3 a.m. on Jan. 15, and claimed the life of LSU sophomore and Alpha Phi member Madison Brooks, 19, of Covington, La.
On Monday, the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office announced that four people had been arrested and are facing charges including raping Brooks prior to her death. Investigators say Brooks’ blood-alcohol level was .319% at the time of the crash, which is nearly four times the legal driving limit for an adult, according to arrest documents.
The accused include an unnamed 17-year-old who was booked on a third-degree rape charge into the East Baton Rouge Parish juvenile detention center on Sunday. Kaivon Washington, 18, was arrested and booked on the same charge on Monday.
Authorities say two other individuals who were in the car with Brooks shortly before her death were also arrested. Casen Carver, 18, and Everett Lee, 27, were booked on charges of principle to third-degree rape.
WBRZ-TV in Baton Rouge reports that Washington reportedly told authorities before he surrendered that he, Brooks, and the other suspects had left the Tigerland bar Reggie’s and had been drinking heavily. Washington reportedly claimed he and the other teen had sex with Brooks in the vehicle’s backseat, and that Carver and Lee were in the front seat.
The sheriff’s office said that Brooks’ blood-alcohol level at the time would not allow her to consent to sexual acts. The lawyers for the accused said they have a video that shows that Brooks was not “in a drunken stupor” and knew what she was doing before the sex acts occurred.
Louisiana law decrees that third-degree rape occurs “when the victim is incapable of resisting or of understanding the nature of the act because of a stupor or abnormal condition of mind produced by an intoxicating agent or any cause and the offender knew or should have known of the victim’s incapacity.”
Washington told investigators that the sex was consensual and that when Brooks asked to go home, she gave them multiple addresses and asked to be dropped off near the Pelican Lakes subdivision off of Burbank Drive.
Shortly after her encounter with the accused, Brooks was struck and killed by a car as she was in the middle of a street.
Court documents show that Brooks was at Reggie’s Bar in Tigerland when she met up with the four guys. Surveillance video shows her getting into the car with them and at that point two of the suspects said they engaged in consensual sex.
Ronald Haley, a lawyer for two of the suspects, says Washington and Everett Lee are innocent based on a video that one of the four uploaded to the cloud. He said “based on her body language, based on her words, based on what she was saying, I can sit here firmly on even ground and say that a rape did not occur that evening.”
But, according to arrest records, one of Haley’s clients told police that “she was drunk.” Surveillance video also allegedly shows Brooks stumbling and falling more than once.
The arrests have sparked discussions about alcohol being served to underage teens and prompted a strong statement from LSU President William F. Tate IV, who sent a statement commenting on Brooks’ death and the investigation.
“Madison was a daughter, a granddaughter, a sister, a niece, a classmate, and a friend to many of you. By all accounts, she was an amazing young woman with limitless potential,” the statement said. “She should not have been taken from us in this way. What happened to her was evil, and our legal system will parcel out justice.
“Our collective grief and outrage cannot be put into mere words. So what can we do? Our place to target our attention is the very place where this encounter began.
“All but one of the suspects involved in this horrific scenario were underage yet were able to consume alcohol at a local bar. As such, our action plan starts with a deep and relentless focus on any establishment that profits off our students by providing alcohol to underage individuals. In the coming days, we will call a meeting with these business owners to discuss how their responsibilities directly impact the safety of our students. Enough is enough.”
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Why aren't they charged with a hate crime?
How do they know that this young woman was sexually assaulted? All that has been revealed to us is that she died because she was struck by a car.
Looking at the cover picture, she really was a snow bunny, rip Becky
Did th racists onhere sayig”usual suspects” an claim they mjrd her no law the case?! f the our susicts we Whjte and she ws ki b aunt rive rha she called🙄! There was also no rape there are text messages, vidoe and audio which prior everything. Nd force her o he’s fake I’d for months a this bar, she had a shifty if drunken one night stands. Thee three sr e being charged solely for political reasons.
Such eye lashes
Reporter Eleanor might want to trim her eyelashes…just a little
You would think this girl would have learned something from the idaho college girls who partied with strangers in their own home.
Typical outcome for someone who surrounds themselves with thugs.
Public Service Announcement: THE JUDGE SAID that the video shows the suspects “callously” laughing at the drunk 19-year-old woman as she slurred her words, reported local outlet WAFB.
He also reviewed footage taken from Reggie’s Bar which showed Brooks falling over and struggling to stand in front of at least one of the suspects before they left the bar together. Her blood alcohol level was four times the legal limit at the time of her death and her autopsy shows injuries from a sexual assault, according to an arrest warrant.
The judge concluded that – based on the two videos and statements made by Mr Carver to investigators – he said it was clear that a crime had occurred that fateful night.
There should be different laws when THESE people do this.
What an intensely cruel way to die 💔
3 suspect they were both black and a white boys as well and I hope this 3 nigga rot in prison and burn in hell 🔥🔥🔥 😡😡😡😡
Alcohol paved the way for a horrible rape and death.
Yeah nod your heads how they just sortta raped her you scum bag ——! Your law degree is kaput ! Your soul is kaput. !
Note:! Geaux back and look at prior investigations of Reggie’s ,
Reggies , its employees and owner were caught spiking mass served hooch with downers , ghb , etc . This is known locally , this is fact , if ever , and I don’t even think like or condone doxing people , however , the owner , “owners” of this bar , could care less , and only because their connections are they in business and not in prison . Hey ! To the Reggie’s owner “owners” God , yes , none of your profits will aide you at your hearing , God , will Judge you , may God have mercy on your soul, You are So F—-d! It matters not , A beautiful Woman’s life , taken ! Yes You ! you signed her death warrant , all debts get paid with interest .
Bottom Line ! ::; Reggie’s served her beyond drunk , his clients the violated her , and then left this Woman for dead ! We DEMAND Justice for this , no one , none , you will not intoxicate and rape our daughters and get away with , we will —— your head off your neck ! FACT !
To the owners of Reggie’s you scum bag piece of sh—-t! Geaux cook in Hell ! That’s where you are going ! Your stomach will roast in Hell for Ten Billion years you son of a motherless goat !
If I was the judge I would ask was the sex worth 12 to 30 years in jail but these kids will never survive prison lol 😆
She knew what she was there for😑
They all should be arrested, no matter the age. And the punishment should be years in prison where they all would be legally raped by other inmates at least once a week for as long as they stay in prison. Maybe others would think twice before doing something like this if they knew that would be the punishment.. Just my thoughts..
Those bars would have been in check decades ago , but no ! Living vicariously thru your little a—-hole kids , geaux f—-yourself , you are no more than amphibian sh——!!!
To all Alumni , from Alum , to all of you that not only condone , even promote , have promoted this drunk cult of personality , pray , pray really really hard , ask for mercy ! Gods eyes are upon you and always have been , shame , shame on you , don’t even get out of bed tomorrow , you are of no use to this world , ugly is all that you make , harm is all that you represent .
When I was younger and white women would not think of getting in a car with nor talking with black men, this type of thing didn't happen. Black men should date black women and same for whites. It's the woman's fault for not respecting herself enough to have got into a car with them. When will people get their heads outta their butts and start teaching their kids common sense again ??