> "The father told the case worker and an officer in her presence that
> he didn't want her back. He said 'Take her, I don't want her,"' Hill
> said.
> Hill cited the family's background as the reason the family shunned
> the girl. All five children are refugees from the West African nation
> of Liberia.
> http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-07-24-arizona-children-assau...
> 4 Ariz. boys accused of raping 8-year-old girl
> PHOENIX (AP) — Officers responding to a report of hysterical screams
> found an 8-year-old girl partially clothed and four boys, barely in
> their teens, running from an empty shed.
> The boys, ages 9 to 14, face charges ranging from sexual assault to
> kidnapping, police said Thursday. Authorities in Phoenix say it's one
> of the most horrific cases they've ever seen.
> Investigators said the boys lured the girl to an empty shed on July 16
> under the pretense of offering her gum. The boys then held the girl
> down while they took turns raping her, police said.
> "She was brutally sexually assaulted for a period of about 10 to 15
> minutes," police Sgt. Andy Hill said.
> The 14-year-old boy was charged Wednesday as an adult with two counts
> of sexual assault and kidnapping, the Maricopa County Attorney's
> Office said. He appeared in court Thursday and was being held without
> bond. He does not yet have a defense lawyer.
> The other boys — ages 9, 10, and 13 — were charged as juveniles with
> sexual assault. The 10- and 13-year-old boys also were charged with
> kidnapping, the office said Thursday.
> "This is a deeply disturbing case that has gripped our community,"
> Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas said. "Our office will seek
> justice for the young victim in this heartrending situation."
> The outrage over the allegations has intensified when police said the
> girl's parents criticized her after the attack and blamed her for
> bringing shame on the family.
> "The father told the case worker and an officer in her presence that
> he didn't want her back. He said 'Take her, I don't want her,"' Hill
> said.
> Hill cited the family's background as the reason the family shunned
> the girl. All five children are refugees from the West African nation
> of Liberia.
> In some parts of Africa, women often are blamed for being raped for
> enticing men or simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
> Girls who are raped often are shunned by their families.
> "It's a shame-based culture, so the crime is not as important as
> protecting the family name and the name of the community," said Tony
> Weedor, a Liberian refugee in Littleton, Colo., and co-founder of the
> CenterPoint International Foundation, which helps Liberians resettle
> in the United States.
> "I just feel so sorry for this little girl," he said. "Some of these
> people will not care about the trauma she's going through — they're
> more concerned about the shame she brought on the family."
and habits to our backwards countries. It's such an enrichment for our
western society.
