A Louisiana man facing rape charges in connection with the case of LSU student and cheerleader Madison Brooks is asking a judge to bar her relatives and supporters from wearing pink in court during his trial.
Desmond Carter, 21, is among three men accused of sexually assaulting Brooks, 19, inside a vehicle in East Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on January 15, 2023.
Authorities have alleged that after the assault, Brooks was left outside the car. She later wandered onto a highway, where she was fatally hit by a passing vehicle.
Ahead of Carter’s scheduled August 17 trial on rape charges, his defense team filed a motion seeking to prevent Brooks’ loved ones from wearing pink — described as her favorite color — arguing that the display could improperly influence or intimidate jurors.
Since Brooks’ death, her family and supporters have often worn pink at court appearances and public gatherings as a tribute to the late LSU student.
A judge is expected to take up the request Tuesday. Prosecutors with the East Baton Rouge District Attorney’s Office have urged the court to reject the defense motion.
Carter’s attorneys pointed to prior rulings in which courts found that a “carnival atmosphere” could undermine a defendant’s right to a fair trial. Prosecutors, however, called that comparison a “gross mischaracterization of the facts at hand,” according to WBRZ.
The prosecution also noted that Brooks’ family members and friends have worn pink throughout earlier legal proceedings tied to her death without issue.
Prosecutors wrote in their argument to allow pink in the courtroom that Brooks’ supporters would be ‘silent, passive spectators’ to the facts, and described Carter’s demand as ‘absurd.’
Madison Brooks, 19, was fatally hit by a car in East Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on January 15, 2023, after she was allegedly left on the side of the road by her accused rapists
Casen Carver, 18, (left) Kaivon Washington, 18, (center) and Desmond Carter, 17, (right) are charged with first-degree rape
Carter is facing rape charges alongside Kaivon Washington and Casen Carver, as prosecutors claim they assaulted Brooks in a car after they drank together at a bar.
The defendants deny raping Brooks, and say only consensual sex happened in the back of the car.
Footage then showed Brooks stumbling across a road after she was allegedly dumped by the sidewalk by the men, moments before a moving car struck her.
Authorities have said her blood-alcohol level was .319 percent, almost four times the legal driving limit, and she stumbled into the four-lane road where she was hit by a truck.
In legal filings last year, attorneys for Carver and Carter claimed that injuries consistent with sexual assault allegedly found on Brooks’ body were not their doing.
They claimed that Brooks had consensual rough sex with another Louisiana State University student the night before, and say it was that encounter which caused her injuries.
A motion claimed the evidence ‘will gut the State’s theory of the case’ and prove their innocence.
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The filing was condemned by prosecutors, with District Attorney Hillar Moore said the filing was ‘totally inappropriate and not in accordance with the applicable rules of law’.
The motion was ultimately rejected by a judge, as it was branded ‘irrelevant.’
In a rejected legal filing ahead of his trial, Carter demanded that Brooks’ loved ones be banned from wearing pink in the courtroom
Brooks was allegedly raped by Carter and Washington in the back of their car while the other two suspects watched after a night of drinking at a bar in Tigerland
Footage released by authorities shows the student crossing the road before she was struck by a moving car, and she later died from her injuries
Brooks died after being hit by a ride-share car at 3am on January 15, when she was dropped off by the men. The driver of the vehicle was arrested, but he was not charged as he was not impaired and contacted emergency services immediately.
Two Good Samaritans reportedly stopped to perform CPR on the sophomore LSU student after the collision.
East Baton Rouge Parish Coroner’s Office says they were guided by first responders on the phone in the pouring rain after Madi was hit by the ride-share car.
They confirmed that Madi Brooks died from ‘multiple traumatic injuries’ when she was hit by a car after allegedly being raped.
Following the arrest of Brooks’ alleged attackers, Washington was also accused of raping another young woman who claims he attacked her in October 2023 after targeting her at Reggie’s, the same bar the group met Brooks.
The victim in that case said she was too drunk to go home so asked if she could stay at one of Washington’s friend’s apartments.
Her sorority Alpha Phi confirmed that she donated her kidneys and heart
Madison Brooks had been drinking at a bar before she was allegedly raped and fatally struck by a car on January 14, 2023
According to his arrest affidavit, they all went back to the home together, where she and the friend started having sex in front of Washington. The friend allegedly became more ‘aggressive’, pinning her down and ignoring her as she pleaded with him to ‘stop’.
The alleged incident is the third accusation of rape to have been made against Washington.
In addition to Brooks, he is accused of raping a 12-year-old girl in 2020 after following her home from a pool party when he was 15.
The Walker High School Varsity Football player has been charged with first-degree rape in that case.
