All three members of the 2005-2006 men's lacrosse team who are charged with raping an exotic dancer last spring are speaking publicly for the first time since their indictments on "60 Minutes" this Sunday.
According to a statement from CBS News, David Evans, Trinity '06, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann maintain their innocence in interviews with correspondent Ed Bradley.
All three were charged with first-degree rape, first-degree kidnapping and first-degree assault after an off-campus party last spring.
"It's a national story we began working on six months ago," said Kevin Tedesco, a "60 Minutes" spokesperson. "A '60 Minutes' story on an event can often refocus attention on it and in this case... you will be hearing from [all of] the accused for the first time."
Bradley also interviewed Kim Roberts, the other dancer at the party, who refuted the alleged victim's account of the night's events.
The press release said Bradley asked Evans whether he thinks about the impending trial and a possible jail term.
"Thirty years-I could go to jail for something that never happened," Evans responded.
Bradley made multiple visits to Durham and conducted interviews with many people-including administrators and family of the defendants-for the double-length segment which will make up two-thirds of the program, Tedesco said.
"This is a long and complicated story," he explained. "I wouldn't call [double-length segments] rare, but it's unusual."
According to the release, Roberts denied a number of events that the alleged victim described in her statements to the Durham Police Department. These include Roberts holding on to the alleged victim as three lacrosse players grabbed her, and helping one of the perpetrators dress her after the alleged rape.
"She obviously wasn't hurt... because she was fine," Roberts is quoted saying in response to a question about whether the alleged victim had given any indication that a rape had occurred.
"She's just taking this opportunity to tell the truth and it's up to people who watch Sunday night whether they believe her or not-but this is her story," Tedesco said.
Senior Matt Danowski, a captain of the men's lacrosse team, said he had not been contacted by CBS for the piece, and did not know of any teammates or coaches who had.
"['60 Minutes'] is definitely going into a lot more in-depth levels in order to get people to realize what's going on," he said.
The University was previously featured in a double-length "60 Minutes" segment in 2002 when Bradley followed three patients at the Duke Brain Tumor Center as they underwent aggressive experimental treatments.
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