A student who was visiting the University of California, Santa Cruz for a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender conference in February claimed that she had been raped in broad daylight on the school’s campus.
Turns out, though, Morgan Triplett’s story was a hoax. According to police, the bizarre truth is that she successfully used Craigslist to locate a stranger who agreed to beat her up in exchange for sex.
Triplett, 20, a student at University of California-Santa Barbara, allegedly posted two abuser-wanted ads in the Santa Cruz County region of Craigslist. In both, she promised she wouldn’t file charges.
The one seeking somebody to shoot her in the shoulder in exchange for sex didn’t pan out. However, Triplett did find someone willing to “punch, kick and bruise her in exchange for sex,” reports the Register-Pajaronian.
Triplett met her unnamed mangler somewhere on or near the UC Santa Cruz campus, reports local NBC affiliate KSBW.
According to court records, “they had sex and afterwards she used a cellphone screen reflection as a mirror to see if the injuries were bad enough. (Triplett) then directed him to hit her some more.”
With fresh bruises to substantiate her twisted tale, Triplett then notified 911 that a mysterious assailant had raped and pummeled her while she was walking on a path looking for banana slugs (the UCSC mascot, incidentally).
Prosecutor Johanna Schonfield noted that local law enforcement had wasted countless hours investigating the fraudulent crime.
Schonfield also noted that investigators became suspicious of Triplett’s story when she sought to prevent DNA samples during a sexual assault exam.
Triplett’s motive, such as it may have been, is not clear.
“She was suicidal, and she wanted something to almost bring her back to reality,” Schonfeld suggested.
In an interview, Triplett’s father curiously argued that his daughter wanted to get beaten up but did not want to be raped.
“What we’re dealing with is a very scared, very upset, very confused 20-year-old girl who has made some poor choices,” he told the Register-Pajaronian.
He added somewhat cryptically that there are “two sides to every story.”
In a court appearance on Friday, the student pleaded not guilty and was released on her own recognizance. Prosecutors and her defense attorney agreed that she shouldn’t stay in jail because she is currently undergoing psychological treatment for depression.
“Right now I just want this to settle down,” Triplett told the Register-Pajaronian in a brief interview outside the courthouse. “I’m trying to move on with my life.”
Triplett was presumably in Santa Cruz for the UC Santa Cruz Western Regional LGBTQIA Conference 2013, “a conference that is rooted in the inclusiveness of all queer identities and its intersections, especially those based in sexuality, class, gender and race.”
Workshops at that conference included “Body Image 101: Destigmatizing Queer Bodies,” “Navigating Polyamory” and “WHAT A SLUT: Addressing the Stereotype of the “Slutty” Bi/Pan/Fluid Individual.”
