I’ll admit it. I was as guilty as the rest of you last March when I planted my foot firmly on the tailgate and hopped on to the bandwagon with the rest of the sheep as we unabashedly assumed that three Duke University students accused of raping a stripper at a lacrosse party were, without question, guilty of such a terrible crime.

Shame on us all.

As I write this, CNN reports that the charges against Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty and David Evans have been completely dropped; that there were ‘inconsistencies so significant and so contrary to the evidence’ that they had no choice but to put a stop to the disgusting display of blatant careerist politics and race-baiting put on by Durham District Attorney Michael Nifong as he attempted to ruin the lives of three innocent young men.

As awful as that sounds, it doesn’t end there ‘ it gets much, much worse. Nifong, in conjunction with Crystal Gail Magnum, the woman who filed the false charges in the first place, have done potentially severe damage to the credibility of any woman who will henceforth decide to file rape charges in our nation’s courts. It is my honest opinion that any applicable criminal charges, in addition to whatever civil charges those students’ lawyers can conjure up, should be filed against the both of them, and that the most extreme penalty allowed under law be handed down.

I can hear the dissenters already. ‘What else is new? It’s a white boy protecting white boys.’ Wrong. I have no love for lacrosse players, and even less love for Duke. This is purely and simply a matter of widespread fanaticism fueled by the racial tensions of an area well-known for its class-based and ethnic divisiveness. It was a fire stoked by a district attorney who was more worried about getting re-elected than he was about uncovering the truth. It was a media shit-storm; a grand witch-hunt that played with our emotions, prodded our personal racial insecurities and had us all calling for the blood of innocent men.

Don’t allow my defense of these students to detract from the seriousness of the crime they were accused of committing. Rape is a heinous offense, one that should undoubtedly carry stricter sentences than it currently does. I don’t think anyone can intelligently disagree with that. But what about the other end of the spectrum? What about those women who elect to abuse our legal system, and belittle those of their gender who have actually been raped, by making false accusations and creating doubt as to the veracity of future claims? Women have had to fight hard to gain the degree of respect they hold in our society (though it’s a battle not yet won), and women like Magnum are poison to the cause.

In the coming months, you’ll hear a number of sources defend Magnum, trying to pass her and her case off as a product of desperation, class and racial struggle. Bullshit. There are plenty of minority women, including the current secretary of state, who rise to positions of prominence without filing false rape charges. If you want to increase penalties for rape, you should also increase penalties for those who lie about rape. That’s real justice.

Make no mistake: this case will never end for Seligmann, Evans and Finnerty. This is a legacy they will carry with them for the rest of their days. When they look for a job, when they try to start a family, when they walk down the street, a shadow will hang over them. You never escape a rape charge, whether you’re guilty or not. People who falsely cast this shadow, and men like Nifong who give them the power to do so, are guilty of the worst kind of negligence, and they should pay for what they’ve done.

‘ Matthew McFadden is a senior English and Arabic major.