I am not sure what to say about this. While it is apparent that JH didn't participate in the rape in any way, nor was he drinking or condoning what had happened, I find it sad that the parents take no responsibility whatsoever.
They state that they did, in fact, tell the drunk minors to leave her home. Apparently, JH was smart enough to insure a designated driver was with them, but the parents did not. The bottom line is that if drunk minors show up at your home, are let in by your child and then are sent out into the night, it is ultimately your responsibility.
It appears as though the girls at the home begged her to stay with them and call her friends to come and get her, but she "refused." We see that she was puking in the bathroom and had to be carried out by her hands and feet. Why didn't anyone call up to the father and mother to come down and intercede? One visit to the basement from dad should have resulted in him telling these boys they aren't going anywhere with this obviously intoxicated girl.
I don't have teens just yet, but several of my friends do. They walk the line between being responsible parents and being a "narc." But they do have strict rules when it comes to underaged drinking. If a minor shows up at their home and has been drinking, they are allowed to stay put for the rest of the night and stay with them with no phone calls made. If they decide they wish to leave, their parents will be called to come and get them. If they decide to sneak in booth or continue to drink, their parents are called. I think this is a very fair rule. They provide a safe place for the kids to stay and no one gets hurt, or in trouble with their parents or police.
These parents did no such thing. I know that if a group of loud kids showed up at my home uninvited at midnight, I would definitely be down there investigating what is going on. There is absolutely NO WAY those kids would have left my home once I realized they had been drinking. Since the girl was getting sick, I would have contacted her parents immediately to come and pick her up. I draw the line when a kid is apparently sick and passing out. This girl was so drunk, she could have easily thrown up in her own mouth and choked to death in the middle of the night. Or she could have gone into a coma from alcohol poisoning.
Also, it should be noted that the group was right out front of their home, with the girl puking in the street and her pictures being taken, her clothing taken off, etc... Out front in that street is where a huge portion of the assaults took place and where the pictures that were circulated were taken. Did they not even peek out a window to see what this loud group was doing???
So to say how much they should be commended for their non-actions that evening is disengenous. Those kids became YOUR responsibility the moment they stepped through your door and entered your home, with their son's permission.
Do I think they are bad people and that JH is deserving of the horrible things said about him (i.e. part of the rape crew, etc...) Absolutely NOT!!! But they COULD have and SHOULD have prevented a lot of this from happening if they had just done something rather than kicking the kids out and going back to bed!
I do feel bad for JH, as it is quite apparent that he is not a rapist nor part of any "rape crew." But he did, in fact, allow that poor girl to leave his home with the drunken boys.
