Outrage after four US men charged with raping 9-year-old

Four men have been accused in Utah of raping a nine-year-old child while her mother smoked methamphetamine, in a case that has prompted a furious outcry and appeals for calm.
According to a statement by the Uintah County Sheriff's Office, the rape took place on March 27 as the mother was visiting friends in the town of Vernal, east of Salt Lake City, and went to the garage to smoke drugs while her daughter slept on a couch.
"During that time, the child was taken into another room in the home where she was raped by the four men," the sheriff's office said in a statement.
The men, who were living temporarily at the house, were later arrested and charged with rape and sodomy.
They made their initial appearance in court on Tuesday and are scheduled for a bail hearing on April 11.
The case has led to a public outcry in the small town and beyond, with some calling in social media postings for the four men to face a firing squad or be hanged.
The calls for vigilante justice prompted the sheriff's office to appeal for calm on Monday in a statement on its Facebook page.
 "The interest and concern over the case of victimization of a nine year old girl in our county has been overwhelming and unprecedented," the statement said. "Occasionally, there are incidents that we face that are shocking to the conscience, and this case has certainly been one of those for us all."