Fayner Posts: Our buddy Matthew from Nantucket told me about this yesterday just after it happened.
$5,000 bail? For rape on a child? What the fuck?
Oh, they took his passport. That makes it all better. He can still leave the island and flee to Mexico.
All I know is the 90% white town of around 10,000 ain’t gonna stand by and allow a black man to do this in their sheltered community.
Much of the crime on Nantucket is done by the Jamaican community. That is a fact, not my racist opinion. Look it up if you think I’m hatin’.
FROM HERE: A Nantucket High School senior was arrested Monday for the alleged rape of a 13-year-old freshman girl inside the school.
The suspect, Steven George Cranston, 18, of 6 Killdeer Lane, was arraigned Tuesday on charges of rape of a child with force, indecent assault and battery on a child under 14, and assault and battery. He has since been released from custody on $5,000 bail, and is currently suspended indefinitely from school pending the outcome of the court case.
The alleged sexual assault has prompted school officials to reconsider security measures on the Surfside Road campus, and the family of the 13-year-old girl expressed anger about the way they were informed of the incident by the school.
Cranston, originally from Jamaica, has attended the high school for one year, and was a member of the varsity soccer team, superintendent Robert Pellicone said. Pellicone added that Cranston had committed no prior acts of violence or sexual misbehavior at the school. He also had no prior record with the police department.
During Tuesday’s arraignment, prosecutors requested that bail be set at $100,000, but District Court clerk magistrate Roxana Viera set bail at $5,000. Cranston was also ordered to surrender his passport, and have no contact with the alleged victim. He was released from custody Tuesday after the bail was posted, and was ordered to return to court Monday, Nov. 20, for a formal arraignment before a judge when the question of bail will be reviewed again.
Police said the alleged rape occurred after school, between 4:30 and 5 p.m., on Monday, Nov. 6. According to a report filed with the District Court by Det. Steven Tornovish, the incident began in the main lobby of the high school when Cranston allegedly grabbed the girl by the wrist and pulled her into an elevator. After exiting the elevator, Cranston pulled the girl into an enclosed stairwell, and allegedly raped her on the landing between the first and second floors of the school, according to the report.
“The victim stated that on numerous occasions she told Mr. Cranston to stop and stated ‘no’. She stated that she continuously struggled to get away from Mr. Cranston but was unable to,” Tornovish wrote in his report.
The school resource police officer, Chris Carnevale, was on duty at the high school on the day of the alleged incident, but it took place after his normal working hours and he had already left the building.
Nantucket Police Detective Lieutenant Jerry Adams said police were first informed of the incident just before 4 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 10. He added that the police department and the Cape and Islands District Attorney’s office will likely seek to indict Cranston and move the case to Superior Court, where defendants can receive state prison sentences if found guilty.
“We had probable cause to make an arrest after a thorough investigation was conducted,” Adams said. “A warrant was acquired on Monday and he was arrested in the afternoon. We will look to indict this individual, and the case will be screened by the district attorney.”
While the school does have security cameras on the exterior of the building, there are no cameras on the interior of the school and the incident was not captured on film.
According to family members, the girl did not attend school on Tuesday, Nov. 7, the day after the alleged rape, and did not inform them of the incident. On Wednesday, the girl returned to school, and mentioned to a teacher’s assistant that something had happened to her. On Thursday, the girl gave the teacher’s assistant a full account of the alleged rape, according to family members, but they were not contacted by school officials until Friday afternoon when they learned of the incident for the first time.
“They found out on Wednesday and they didn’t say anything to me,” the girl’s mother said. “She’s embarrassed and she’s ashamed. She doesn’t want to go out of the house. She wants to leave Nantucket. I brought my kids here because I thought they’d be safe. I’m devastated.”
Family members said the girl knew who Cranston was before the incident, but was not romantically involved with him, or even an acquaintance.
Reached by phone, the girl’s aunt also expressed dissatisfaction with the school, and with the court for what she perceived to be a low bail amount given the circumstances of the case.
“My concern is that the school didn’t follow the procedures for reporting this incident. It’s unbelievable to me,” she said. “The mother is devastated. She thought it was guaranteed he would stay in jail. He’s a flight risk, he’s not a native, he’s from Jamaica, so how could they say $5,000 is sufficient? She feels betrayed that the school hasn’t protected her daughter and the system didn’t protect her daughter. There’s no protection, none whatsoever. This is really bad.”
Pellicone said Wednesday that the teacher’s assistant did not inform the school administration of the incident until Friday morning. After learning of the accusation, Pellicone said he first called the office of the town’s attorney, Paul DeRensis, in order to determine the proper procedure, and then contacted police and the girl’s mother.
Prior to contacting the victim’s mother, a female guidance counselor and the teacher’s assistant who was first informed of the incident interviewed the girl.
“In hindsight, we should have been more responsive and acted quicker, but we didn’t have the information right away,” Pellicone said.
He added that Cranston’s suspension from school was extended after his arrest Monday, and he is not allowed anywhere on the campus until the court case is resolved. In the meantime, Pellicone said the school is required to provide “home-bound instruction,” or a tutor, who will meet Cranston at his home or a neutral site to continue his studies.
Depending upon the outcome of the court case, Pellicone said Cranston could be expelled from the school.
“We want to assure the public that even though this happened, we have a safe school and we’re addressing it as best we can with measures for security,” Pellicone said. “This is the mall of the town – it’s the hub – and kids want to hang out here. I will meet with the school administration, the School Committee and the parents to make the school more secure.”