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Vanderbilt Football Rape Trial: Key Witnesses Take Stand, Testimony Reveals Chain of Events

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The testimony from teammates of two former Vanderbilt football players on trial for rape has given jurors a clearer picture of what happened on the night in question, but the interpretation is what will be argued.

According to the Associated Press, Mack Prioleau, DeAndre Woods and Jaborian McKenzie took the stand Tuesday to tell similar stories. Brandon Vandenburg and Corey Batey are currently on trial for aggravated rape and aggravated sexual battery.

Like Vandenburg and Batey, McKenzie and Brandon Banks are also charged in the rape of an unconscious female student in June 2013, but the latter two do not yet have a trial date. The defense noted for the record that McKenzie and Banks could be aiming to use their testimony to lessen their potential punishment.

McKenzie said in his testimony that Vandenburg, who was reportedly dating the alleged victim, "was coaching" those who participated on what to do while handing out condoms, the AP reported. McKenzie described his former teammate's demeanor as "amped, demanding" and "hyper."

According to the Tennessean, McKenzie said he and Banks left their dorm room for food on a Saturday night hanging out with Batey in a dorm room. On their way back, they encountered Vandenburg, who needed help getting his drunk girlfriend into Gillette Hall.

During his testimony, McKenzie identified Vandenburg's voice in an audio recording of the assault. He also said the four football players agreed to disclose everything that happened that night, save the one "bad thing."

Prioleau said on the stand he woke up in the middle of the night to sounds of his roommate, Vandenburg, talking to others in their room, the AP reported. He said he also heard the sounds of a pornographic video from a laptop. From the top bunk, he noticed the unconscious female on the floor and that she was later moved to the bottom bunk.

Woods testified to seeing a naked, unconscious female in the hallway, as the prosecution said Vandenburg took her out of the room after the assault. According to the AP, Woods said in his testimony he and Chris Boyd, another former Vanderbilt football player, moved the woman into the room and placed her on a bed. The testimony indicated Woods and Boyd did not know the woman had been raped.

Woods and Prioleau both testified that they do not have a definitive reason for choosing not to call the police that day. Both were 18 at the time and had arrived on campus ahead of the fall semester likely for spring football practices.

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