CHARLESTON — The woman at the center of a torture case that raised questions of racism in West Virginia now says she lied about being a victim.
The Charleston Gazette reported that Megan Williams plans a Wednesday news conference in Columbus, Ohio, that she lied about the 2007 incident in which she said she was assaulted by a group of whites in Logan County.
Seven people were convicted in that case. National and local advocates wanted hate crimes charges filed, since Williams is black.
But Brian Abraham, the former Logan County prosecutor who oversaw those cases, dismissed the news conference as a publicity stunt.
Abraham says the seven, who all pleaded guilty, were convicted on physical evidence and their own statements, not statements from Williams.
