‘Senior Salute’ Rape: Trial Begins For Teen Charged With Raping 15-Year-Old Girl At Exclusive Private School

The case of the “senior salute” rape at an exclusive New Hampshire school has a 19-year-old boy charged with the rape of a 15-year-old girl.

According to Good Morning America, Owen Labrie, who is now 19, is a former student at St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire and is charged in the alleged rape of a 15-year-old girl in 2014. The teen has pleaded not guilty to multiple felony counts, but his trial is set to begin and it will put the exclusive establishment at the center of what some are saying was the boys’ “sexual scoring” games.

As the “senior rape” trial begins the prosecution will try to prove that the culture that exists at St. Paul’s is clouded by a disturbing tradition — and authorities are still investigating these claims. The allegations that the male student population is full of sexually eager teens was revealed by Labrie himself, when police interrogated the teen, the Associated Press reported.

Labrie — who remains free — told police that before they graduated from St. Paul’s, guys had a competition to see who could sleep with the most younger girls. The “score” was originally written with permanent marker behind the washing machine, however, when the school kept painting over it, it transferred to an online forum. Labrie admitted to police he was trying to be the number one member of the “senior salute” team.

According to ABC affiliate station WMUR-TV in Manchester, prosecutors believe the “senior salute” rape took place just days before Labrie — who has been accepted to Harvard — graduated from the school. They say the teen raped the unidentified girl inside a building on the school’s campus May 30, 2014.

“We believe this is a competition that he was engaged in with some of his fellow students and that it involved attempting to hook up with other female students at the campus,” Lt. Timothy O’Malley of the Concord Police Department told ABC News.

The “senior salute” rape trial begins this week and school officials are bracing for all the media attention the case is already receiving. In a statement, St. Paul’s School — who has high-profile alumni, including Secretary of State, John Kerry — defended its culture.

“St. Paul’s School has policies in place to ensure that our students are safe, secure, and treated equitably. Our faculty and staff do their utmost to enforce these policies and to guide our students concerning challenging topics.”

“Current allegations about our culture are not emblematic of our School or our values, our rules, or the people who represent our student body, alumni, faculty, and staff.”

Owen Labrie has pleaded not guilty of all the charges in the “senior salute” rape case and claimed he never had sex with the girl. A jury made up of 11 men and three-women will begin hearing testimony Tuesday.

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