Exotic dancer who lied about three Duke lacrosse players raping her SMILES as she walks free 14 years after stabbing her boyfriend to death

A former exotic dancer who falsely accused three Duke lacrosse players of raping her has been freed from prison 14 years after fatally stabbing her boyfriend. 

Crystal Mangum, 47, walked out of the North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women on Friday after serving her sentence for the murder of Reginald Daye in 2011. 

Mangum was seen with a big grin on her face as she left the jail in a gray sweatshirt and khaki pants.

The former stripper captured national attention in 2006 when she alleged that Duke lacrosse players David Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann raped her after she performed at a party. 

The case gained notoriety as prosecutor Mike Nifong, the Durham County District Attorney, was disbarred in 2007 for lying in court and failing to disclose information that would have proven the three men’s innocence. 

The case against the players became a controversial issue nationwide and sparked debates over race and sex work.  

The charges against the three players were dropped in 2007, and in 2024, Mangum admitted that she had fabricated the allegations. 

She told podcaster Katerena DePasquale that her false allegations ‘were wrong’, and conceded that she had ‘testified falsely’ against them. 

In a 2024 podcast appearance, Mangum said: ‘I betrayed the trust of a lot of other people who believed in me and made up a story that wasn’t true because I wanted validation from people and not from God, and that was wrong when God already loved me for who I was.’ 

Mangum never faced any criminal charges for the false allegations.

But in February 2010, she was charged with the attempted murder of her then-partner, Milton Walker, after allegedly assaulting him and setting fire to his possessions. 

The attempted murder charges were dropped but Mangum was convicted on charges of child abuse, injury to personal property and resisting arrest. 

She also faced arson charges for almost burning the home down while her three children were inside, but the jury was deadlocked 9-3 on those charges. 

She was sentenced to time served in that case and was released in December 2010. 

Less than a year later, Mangum was arrested again in April 2011 for stabbing her boyfriend, Reginald Daye, who died in hospital ten days later. 

Mangum claimed she stabbed Daye in self-defense, but prosecutors said evidence suggested Daye was trying to escape when he was attacked. 

Mangum was convicted of second-degree murder in November 2013 and was sentenced to a 14 to 18-year prison stint.

Upon release, she will be living with a friend in Durham, North Carolina, corrections spokesman Brad Deen said. 

Mangum’s false allegations against the Duke students date back to March 13, 2006, when three of the four co-captains of the men’s lacrosse team hosted a party for their teammates at their off-campus house.

The group had paid a total of $800 for two exotic dancers to perform, one of whom was single mom Mangum, who was a student at the nearby North Carolina Central University.

In the aftermath, Mangum accused Evans, Seligmann, and Finnerty of raping and sexually assaulting her in the bathroom.

But her story began to unravel, and DNA evidence failed to match any of the 46 players on the team.

Mangum eventually recanted her statement and admitted to fabricating her account.