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Third Player Indicted in Duke Lacrosse Case

A grand jury has indicted a third member of the Duke University lacrosse team on charges of first-degree rape. David Evans, a 23-year-old senior and team co-captain from Bethesda, Md., was also indicted on sexual offense and kidnapping charges.

Police say the players sexually assaulted a woman who was hired to perform at a team party as an exotic dancer. All three suspects deny the charges. Evans turned himself in to police Monday afternoon. Alongside his teammates and his parents -- a Washington attorney and a lobbyist -- Evans made a brief statement to the media outside the Durham, N.C., jail. "I am innocent," he said. "Every member of the Duke University lacrosse team is innocent."

Duke University administrators issued a short statement responding to the indictment, which came one day after the school's graduation ceremony. They said it's important to remember an indictment is not a conviction, and they asked the community to balance judgment with compassion.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Adam Hochberg
Based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Adam Hochberg reports on a broad range of issues in the Southeast. Since he joined NPR in 1995, Hochberg has traveled the region extensively, reporting on its changing economy, demographics, culture and politics. He also currently focuses on transportation. Hochberg covered the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, followed candidates in three Presidential elections and reported on more than a dozen hurricanes.