Use the map above to follow the events of the 2012 Steubenville Assault
Good Kids is based on a true story.
Iizuka was inspired to write Good Kids by the events and the community response to the rape of Jane Doe, 17, by Trent Mays and Ma'lik Richmond, both 16, on August 12, 2012 in Steubenville, Ohio. While the actual case had a final verdict (albeit a sad depiction of how our justice system often fails sexual assault survivors), the play leaves the conclusion aside to delve more into the complexities of public opinion and social media influence. We get to see more of how the community and social media created many different accounts of the night and those involved directly.
What is Steubenville?
And what happened?
Steubenville is a small town on the Ohio River and the border of West Virginia. Ohio has no professional football teams, making high school and college football teams the center of the sport-loving state's attention. This was especially the case in Steubenville.
Trent Mays, 16, and Ma'lik Richmond, 16, two of Steubenville's well-beloved star football players, kidnapped and raped a woman from a neighboring city across the river. They then began to post about her on social media, forcing the town to make a decision: either support the "good kids" they admire and cheer on each week, or support the woman the boys assaulted.
Click the links within the destinations on the map to explore more of the story, the town, and the case that separated the county and the country.
