The woman whose claim that she was raped in 2010 led to the punishment of four University of Montana football players, including the expulsion of one, will tell her story on the television show60 Minutes Reports on Showtime tonight.
Kelsey Belnap is revealing her identity for the first time. She says four football players raped her one night after a drinking competition at an apartment near the University. She reported the incident to Missoula police, but Missoula County Prosecutor Fred Van Valkenburg did not press charges.
Van Valkenburg told 60 Minutes that the case was “not prosecutable,” and that he doesn’t think his office did anything wrong.
The US Justice Department has been critical of how local authorities handled the case.
“This was not a prosecutable case... I don't think we did anything wrong," said Van Valkenburg.
Former University of Montana Dean of Students Charles Couture eventually did his own investigation. That resulted in the expulsion of one player. Another player, who finished the academic year, was banned from returning to campus. The other two players, who had left the school, would face disciplinary charges if they tried to re-enroll. Couture says he "firmly believed that Kelsey had been raped by a number of individuals who happened to be student athletes."
Belnap says she believes the men who raped her got away with a crime.
