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Classmate of Kavanaugh Accuser Retracts Claim She Knew About Sexual Assault in High School: 'I Have No Idea'

NBC News published story on Miranda's initial claim

Brett Kavanaugh / Getty Images
September 20, 2018

A classmate of Christine Blasey Ford previously wrote the sexual assault Ford has accused Brett Kavanaugh of committing was common knowledge at their school, but she is now saying she has "no idea" whether it occurred.

"That it happened or not, I have no idea," Cristina King Miranda told NPR's Nina Totenberg in a new interview. "I can't say that it did or didn't."

It's a 180 from what Miranda wrote on Facebook Wednesday—the post is now deleted—attesting to Ford's credibility, saying, "The incident did happen" and "many of us heard about it in school." Kavanaugh has denied Ford's allegation that he drunkenly pinned her to a bed at a house party in the early 1980s, groped her and tried to stifle her screams before she escaped.

However, Ford said she told no one about the alleged attack until a therapy session in 2012 with her husband.

Miranda and Ford attended the prestigious Holton-Arms School at the time of the alleged attack, while Kavanaugh was a student at another elite school, Georgetown Preparatory.

"Christine Blasey Ford was a year or so behind me, I remember her," Miranda wrote on Facebook. "This incident did happen. Many of us heard about it in school and Christine's recollection should be more than enough for us to truly, deeply know that the accusation is true."

https://twitter.com/jaybookmanajc/status/1042386834284789760?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1042386834284789760&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.npr.org%2F2018%2F09%2F20%2F649787076%2Fkavanaugh-accuser-classmate-that-it-happened-or-not-i-have-no-idea

She went on to describe living in a privileged, hard-drinking culture at the time where she once had to call the cops on her own party, and she called on Kavanaugh's female supporters to question his integrity. She also acknowledged being strongly opposed to Kavanaugh's nomination before Ford came forward.

Now, Miranda tells NPR she was initially "empowered" with her Facebook post but didn't think she would have to defend what she wrote.

"In my [Facebook] post, I was empowered and I was sure it probably did [happen]," Miranda said to NPR. "I had no idea that I would now have to go to the specifics and defend it before 50 cable channels and have my face spread all over MSNBC news and Twitter."

She wrote on Twitter that she deleted the Facebook post "because it served its purpose and I am now dealing with a slew of requests for interviews … Organizing how I want to proceed. Was not ready for that, not sure I am interested in pursuing. Thanks for reading."

She told NPR she did hear of a "buzz" about an incident like it happening at a party and maintains she still believes Ford.

Miranda has also since deleted her Twitter account.

NBC News put three reporters on Miranda's story on Wednesday, and they headlined their piece, "Accuser's schoolmate says she recalls hearing of alleged Kavanaugh incident," while adding she said she had no first-hand knowledge.

One of the story's authors, Ken Dilanian, described the post on MSNBC Wednesday night and said of Miranda's claim, "That may or may not be true," while signaling he supported the FBI further investigating Ford's claims. MSNBC anchor Nicolle Wallace also read out part of Miranda's social media posting on her program "Deadline White House."

Ford and Kavanaugh have been invited to testify about the attack on Monday. Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa) said he would be willing to let Ford speak with Senate staffers privately if she wanted to avoid a public hearing.

Ford and Senate Democrats are calling for an FBI investigation before she testifies about the alleged assault, and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D., N.Y.) has called on Ford to skip the hearing altogether, saying it's a "sham."