What’s in a name?

A line in today’s story about Kevin Coe says that he was “convicted of being the South Hill Rapist 25 years ago.” Opinion page editor Doug Floyd raised a question about the accuracy of this phrasing.

Technically speaking, Coe stands convicted of one assault, although he was initially convicted on four counts. That makes him a convicted rapist, and the suspected South Hill Rapist, Floyd argued.

“Can you be convicted of a nickname?” Steve Smith asked.

Assistant city editor Dan Hansen said that the wording issue is splitting hairs. “That trial was all about the South Hill Rapist, and he (Coe) was convicted.” The attacks stopped once Coe was arrested, Hansen pointed out.

The issue boils down to semantics. Smith said there is no legal stature under which one can be convicted of “being the South Hill Rapist,” so we should phrase it differently.