Sex Assault, Scandal as Duke University Lacrosse Team Suspended

The Duke men's lacrosse team has been suspended while investigators attempt to learn more about the allegations that team members raped a stripper at an off-campus party.

A woman told police she and another dancer were hired to perform at the party of March 13. The dancer is an unidentified student at North Carolina Central University and told police she was pulled into a bathroom, beaten, choked and raped by three men.

Police took DNA samples from 46 of the 47 players on the team. CBS reported on The Early Show Wednesday that the reason the 47th Duke player did not have to give a sample is because he was black, and the dancer said she was raped by white men.

As reported on CBS, District Attorney Mike Nifong said, "The circumstances of the rape indicated a deep racial motivation for some of the things that were done."

But when Joe Alleva, Director of Athletics at Duke University was interviewed he said, "I've seen no evidence of any racial problems with the lacrosse team or frankly, any of our teams."

ESPN reports that 15 of the 47 members of the Duke University lacrosse team have previous offenses ranging from underage alcohol possession, violating open container laws, public urinations and loud noise.

On Tuesday, the president of Duke University, Richard Brodhead, suspended the team from play and issued this statement: "In this painful period of uncertainty, it is clear to me, as it was to the players, that it would be inappropriate to resume the normal schedule of play."

The News and Observer, a local paper, reviewed court documents and said, "When the woman and another dancer began their routines, one of the men watching held up a broomstick and threatened to sexually assault the women. They left, but were followed out by a man who persuaded them to return. That's when three men pushed her into a bathroom and began the assault, which she said lasted for 30 minutes."

Samiha Khanna, a reporter for News and Observer was able to interview the woman but, in accordance to the policies of the paper, refused to reveal her name. In an interview with Dan Abrams of MSNBC'sAbrams Report, she said: "We don't publish the names of sexual assault victims. The first thing she told me was she reported it because she feels as though generally speaking, people don't really take this type of assault seriously.

And she has a young daughter; she also was concerned for her family. Knowing that this had happened to her she couldn't live with that. She wanted to report it and sort of get the allegations out there of what had happened."

Before the suspension, Duke was considered one of the premier teams in the nation, with a record of 6-2 with five games remaining. At this time, no charges have been filed. Durham residents have demonstrated in protest over the Duke team's silence.

[Additional Sources: CBS, ESPN, News & Observer, MSNBC's Abrams Report]