Summary
Crystal Mangum, who accused three Duke lacrosse players of rape in 2006, admitted for the first time on a podcast that her claims were fabricated.
She said she lied for validation and apologized to Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty, and David Evans, acknowledging they “didn’t deserve” the accusations.
The case, which drew national attention, collapsed after evidence disproved her story, leading to the disbarment of Durham DA Mike Nifong for misconduct.
Mangum is currently in prison for a 2011 murder conviction.
I’d recommend looking up The Innocence Project to see examples of cases where false accusations result in convictions but you’re already familiar with their work.