A picture may be worth a thousand words, but Ma’lik Richmond, the 17-year-old teen accused of raping a teenager last summer, is telling a different story.
Despite the photograph of the unconscious 16-year-old girl being dragged by Richmond and his buddy Trenton Mays, the football player told ABC News in an exclusive interview that the girl was flirting.
“She had her arm wrapped around me and one hand on my chest,” 17-year-old Ma’lik Richmond of Steubenville told Elizabeth Vargas in an interview for ’20/20.’ “It just felt like she was coming on to me.”
His story will be heard today as both Richmond and Mays head to juvenile court on rape charges stemming from the Aug. 11, 2012 incident.
Richmond continued with his version of the story during the interview. He told Vargas that the photo was taken out of context and that she was definitely conscious and playing along with the group as they teased her for being so drunk.
“She was just like laughing, we were all talking, just clowning around and that’s when her ex-boyfriend was like, ‘Let me get a picture of this drunk B.’ And that’s when we took the picture,” Ma’lik said.
Both defense attorneys agree, saying that the photo proves nothing about her state of mind. They also say that after the photo was taken, she was able to give her passcode to her phone, further supporting that the girl was conscious.
“The photo is what it is. The photo doesn’t suggest that someone is substantially impaired,” Walter Madison, Ma’lik’s attorney, told ABC. “We don’t care what it looks like. We know that after the photo was taken, she exhibited the ability to make decisions.”
The two boys also claim that the girl had been flirting with Mays over social media and sent him several text messages that asked him to join her at the party. When they arrived, Richmond said, she was already intoxicated.
PHOTOS: 411 On Steubenville, Ohio High School Rape Case
After leaving the party with the boys, the victim vomited several times. In the car on the way to another party, Richmond claimed that the girl started kissing on Mays’ neck while he penetrated her with his fingers.
“I turned around and I can see the flash on his phone. Trent was rubbing on her breasts and she was kissing his neck. And then he was trying to unbutton her pants,” Ma’lik said.
This information from Richmond will no doubt be integral in the case, but only time will tell if he’s giving an accurate account.
We’ll keep you updated on the latest in the Steubenville, Ohio rape trial.
