Basketball coach Emari Rashaad O’Garrow was in the Oslo Court of Appeal sentenced to prison for raping five women, one attempted rape, and for having exploited his position to obtain sexual favors.
The prosecutor, Attorney Carl Graff Hartmann, asked for 11 years in prison when he held his procedure in the extensive abuse case. He believed that the defendant had grossly exploited the trust of the young girls and women had to him, and by maneuvering himself into a position where he had the chance to assault and abuse them.
In Oslo District Court, the man was sentenced to 15 years in prison for abusing a total of 12 girls or women. That was two years more than what the prosecuting attorney had asked for.
The defence lawyer satisfied
During the appeal hearing in the Court of Appeal, the jury found the defentant not guilty on numerous counts, about half of the charges. For one of the rapes where the jury found him guilty, the legal judges put the ruling aside.
– Given the jurys’ verdict, this is an appropriate sentence, says defence lawyer, attorney Johnny Veum. In his procedure Veum emphasized that the defendant’s chances to make up for himself, serve his sentence and start a new life also had to be taken into consideration; not only the prosecutor’s arguments for the strictest possible punishment. Veum believes that a bright jury, which also asked questions during the proceedings, was important to reach what he feels was a fair outcome.
Lawyer Trine Rjukan represented several of the victims, and says to Aftenposten that the case has been a great ordeal and burden for all her clients.
She admits that her clients were shocked when the jury found the defendant not guilty on several of the charges. They perceived it as illogical in a case where the pattern was the same. Despite the long and cumbersome process, my clients did the right thing when reporting the rapes. If no one dares to report, the reality will be a Norway where one can assault and rape women without having to worry about facing prosecution. These women have fought for justice and it has a value. But now they are relieved that it is over, says lawyer Rjukan.
While the women explained that they were raped, the former coach explained that all sexual activities took place willingly. Most took place in the rapist’s home, as well as the homes of two of the women.
Police strongly criticized
The earliest cases occurred as far back as 2006, and there was also a report against him in 2010. However, both were dismissed. The cases were reopened in 2013, when even more women came forward claiming to have been assaulted and/or raped by the basketball coach.
The Court of Appeal directed strong criticism against the police for their decision not to further investigate these cases earlier. That way the man in question could have been put to justice earlier.
– The Court is of the opinion that the police must take part of the blame for these cases not being solved earlier. It could have led to new violations being avoided, says the ruling.
Great psychological trauma
– Everyone has suffered from great psychological traumas and has had their life quality significantly reduced, said attorney Rjukan in her procedure. The aid lawyers asked that the defendant had to be ordered to pay compensation to the women, for some of them up to 300 000 norwegian kroner (approx 50 000 dollars), because of the extensive harm he had caused them, both physical and psychological.
She dismisses the argument from the defence that the girls wanted attention, that they wanted to play the victim, and that they after a very long time influenced each other to tell about the abuse.
Los Angeles
The 190 cm tall (about 6ft 3”) Emari Rashaad O’Garrow is believed to have come to Norway from Los Angeles in the United States in the early 2000s, having failed to find himself a team in the NBA (National Basketball Association). In Norway Emari had a long career as both a player and coach in the basketball community in eastern Norway. While with the team Centrum Tigers in the capital of Oslo, he both played for their men’s team and also coached their women’s team during the 2008/08 season, before joining Langhus Basket before the 2010/11 season. Here he was apparently coaching a team of girls aged from 16 to 18 years of age.
The girls who were raped by Emari have mainly been in their teens and early 20s. The youngest was only 16 years old. Many of them is connected to the basketball community and played for teams coached by Emari.
Frieord.no has gained access to the counts of which Emari Rashaad O’Garrow was originally convicted in Oslo District Court. They are as follows:
– Convicted of rape: Some time between September 2004 and February 2005 in an apartment in Oslo, he threw a 16 year old girl down on the bed, took off her clothes, lay over her, held her down and raped her while the girl was in great distress and pain and begged him to stop.
– Convicted of rape: Some time in February-March 2005 in an apartment in Oslo he lay over a 17-year-old girl and raped her although the girl asked him several times to stop and tried to push him away. Despite this, he consummated the rape, and also raped the girl again later that night.
– Convicted of rape: In May 2005, at a hotel in Gothenburg in Sweden, he threw an 18 year old girl into the bed of his hotel room, lay over her and held her tight. He pulled off her underwear and raped her while she tried to prevent it by pushing him off.
– Convicted of rape: At night, Sunday October 22, 2006 in an apartment in Oslo he raped a 26-year-old woman while she cried «no» and «do not do this.»
– Convicted of rape: In April 2007, in an apartment in Oslo he raped again the girl who two years earlier had been raped in Sweden.
– Convicted of rape: In May 2007 in an apartment in Oslo, he lay over a 30-year-old woman and pressed her hands or a t-shirt against her neck so she could not breathe, and feared for her life. In this situation, the woman was raped.
– Convicted of “gross negligent rape”: Saturday 17 July 2010 in an apartment in Oslo unknown to the police, he had voluntary sexual intercourse with a 28 year old woman who had pain during intercourse. When she asked him to stop, he refused and kept going until he ejaculated. This happened while the woman shouted repeatedly that he should stop. For this he was found guilty of gross negligent rape.
– Convicted of attempted rape: 16 August 2010 in an apartment in Oslo, he went into the bedroom of a 26-year-old woman, laid on top of her and tried to rape her. The woman screamed and tried to push him away. She succeeded by bending his fingers backwards so he got hurt and stopped. Then she ran out into the living room. For this the man was found guilty of attempted rape.
– Convicted of rape: In February 2011, in an apartment in Oslo, he pushed a 21-year-old girl against a wall so she hit her head. He then got her into the bedroom, took off her clothes, held her tight and raped the woman while she was in great pain. This happened while the woman tried to resist and prevent the rape.
– Convicted of rape: May 17, 2011, in the morning in an apartment in Oslo, he undressed a 20 year old girl who was sleeping in the bedroom, laid on top of her and held her arms firmly and consummated the rape. During the rape, the woman woke up and screamed «no» and «stop» repeatedly and tried to push him away and kick him.
– Convicted of rape: In January or February, 2012 in an apartment in Oslo, he went into the bedroom where a 24 year old woman was sleeping on her stomach. He removed her quilt and her panties, laid on top of her and tried to rape her. The woman woke up and tried to resist. He pushed her back on the bed and raped her while she cried and begged him to stop.
– Convicted of rape: March 5, 2012 in an apartment in Oslo he raped a 19 year old woman. The woman had clearly told Emari Rashaad O’Garrow that she did not want sexual contact. She managed to talk herself out of the situation at first by asking for a glass of water. After giving her this, O’Garrow still got on top of the woman and raped her.