A former Duke student accused of rape who was supposed to appear in court today is now scheduled to face charges March 21.
Former Trinity sophomore Eric Irons was arrested by Duke Police Sept. 8 for the alleged second-degree rape and first-degree kidnapping of a female Duke student. The incident allegedly occurred at a Central Campus apartment party April 17, according to the probable cause affidavit.
Irons’ court date had previously been pushed back from Nov. 9, 2010. The reason for the delay remains unclear.
The assistant district attorney previously handling the case, Mitchell Garrell, is no longer working in the Durham County District Attorneys’ Office. An unnamed source in a Dec. 19 article in The Herald Sun did not specify whether Garrell was fired or voluntarily left his role as an assistant district attorney.
Assistant District Attorney Kelly Gauger, who began working in the office in the beginning of 2011, will replace Garrell for the case. Gauger said she could not comment on why Garrell is no longer the prosecuting DA or why the court date was rescheduled.
“As far as how a case is being handled, I’m not in a position to say [anything],” Gauger said.
Irons’ attorney Bill Thomas said Irons plans to face the allegations in court, The Chronicle reported in October. Thomas did not respond to multiple attempts for comment.
“Eric Irons is an innocent man,” Thomas said in October. “We have located witnesses and have evidence that the allegations made against him are entirely false. I have every confidence that, once all of the facts are known, that Eric Irons will be completely exonerated of any wrongdoing whatsoever.”
Irons withdrew from the University the day following his arrest. His whereabouts remain unclear, although the warrant for his arrest states that he resides in Hong Kong.
Gauger declined to comment on Irons’ present location, adding that if she did know, she would not be at liberty to say.
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