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Tuscaloosa-Area Legislators Silent In Megan Rondini Rape Case
By Donald V. Watkins
©Copyrighted and Published (via Facebook) on August 29, 2017
©Copyrighted and Published (via Facebook) on August 29, 2017
The Tuscaloosa County, Alabama Legislative delegation has been eerily silent in the Megan Rondini rape. The delegation consists of House members Alan Harper (District. 61), Rich Wingo (District 62), Chairperson Bill Poole (District 63), Vice-Chairperson Chris England (District 70), Artis McCampbell (District 71), and Kyle South (District 16).
Two members of the Alabama Senate represent Tuscaloosa County. Senator Gerald Allen (District 21) represents the vast majority of Tuscaloosa County, including the area encompassing The University of Alabama. Senator Bobby Singleton (District 23) represents a small portion of the county.
Many of these legislators are so-called "law and order" public officials. Yet, not one of them has made a public comment on the high profile Megan Rondini rape case. Megan was the 20-year-old University of Alabama honors student who accused Terry Jackson "Sweet T" Bunn, Jr., of raping her during the early morning hours of July 2, 2015, at his Cottondale residence.
At the time of Megan's rape report, Sweet T was a Robert Bentley gubernatorial appointee to the Alabama Conservation and Natural Resources Advisory Board. Sweet T represented District 7, which encompasses The University of Alabama.
All of these legislators are up for re-election in 2018. Some of them received campaign contributions, directly or indirectly (via political action committees), from ST Bunn Construction Company and/or Sweet T's family members.
The silence of these Tuscaloosa-area legislators in the Megan Rondini rape case constitutes a rare display of bipartisanship in Alabama politics. The only other place where bipartisanship thrives in Alabama politics is the zone of graft and public corruption.
Prior to Governor Bentley's appointment of Steve Marshall as Alabama Attorney General, state prosecutors brought ethics violations and public corruption cases against Democratic and Republican officeholders alike. Today, state prosecutors are not prosecuting any public officials for felony ethics violations or public corruption.
Likewise, state prosecutors are not pursuing felony charges in cases where the defendants are rich and powerful individuals or corporations.
The Megan Rondini rape case has exposed a disturbing flaw in Alabama's criminal justice system. After Sweet T was identified as the suspect in Megan's case, Tuscaloosa County Sheriff Ron Abernathy "fixed" his departments' rape investigation to favor Sweet T. Abernathy's "fix" was an accommodation to the Bunn family and the University's donor relations program, which is headed by his wife Leslie.
Former district attorney Lyn Head refused to prosecute Sweet T because he is a member of the rich and powerful Bunn family, who are mega-donors to the Crimson Tide football program. She later used a grand jury proceeding to cover up her prosecutorial misconduct.
District Attorney Hays Webb has shown no interest in investigating or prosecuting Megan's rape case. Attorney Genarl Marshall is running from Megan's case, as well.
Sheriff Abernathy and prosecutors Heads and Webb took laundered campaign cash from the Bunn family. Lyn Head even took laundered campaign cash from Sweet T.
Each of these law enforcement officials has claimed that his/her receipt of campaign cash from the Bunns did not cloud his/her judgment in freeing Sweet T from prosecution in Megan Rondini's rape charge. They have made this claim in the face of an overwhelming body of tangible, credible, and independently gathered evidence that supported Megan's rape charge.
What is more, the rape in Megan's case was obviously drug-induced. Yet, no law enforcement official involved in the case seemed to care about the suspect's use of a "date rape" drug in connection with the admitted sexual encounter. Additionally, they did not care about Sweet T's history of reported rapes or his history using of "date rape" drugs on young unsuspecting women.
The Tuscaloosa-area legislators, together with the law enforcement officials who "fixed" Megan Rondini's rape case, are expected to be in attendance at this weekend's Alabama-Florida State University football game in Atlanta. All of them love hanging out in skyboxes.
Our investigative team will be present in the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium to identify and report on the skybox patrons who will be hosting these public officials. This event will shine more light on the high net worth individuals and corporations that "own" these officials.
The silence of Tuscaloosa-area "law and order" legislators in a high profile rape case is often bought. As we have reported in past articles, the currency for this kind of deafening silence is usually VIP treatment at Crimson Tide football games.
The local law enforcement officials involved in Megan Rondini's case, the state Attorney General, The University of Alabama's president and board of trustees, and the Tuscaloosa-area legislators are all part of a wall of silence that protects rape suspect Sweet T. Not one of them has stood up for rape victim Megan Rondini, and they never will.
While these officials are eating and drinking in skyboxes during Saturday's football game, it will be interesting to see who has "bought" their silence.
Meanwhile, rape victim Megan Rondini is dead. She killed herself on February 26, 2016, because all of these public officials sold her out for tickets to a football game and other feel-good trinkets of power and privilege.
Sweet T remains free and is on the prowl for his next victim.
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