Colleges Victim Blame, Turn A Blind Eye To Sexual Assault

[BCEagle91]

<br>

<p>There are, undoubtedly, some false rape accusations. Of course, there are tons of
unreported rapes, simply because the process for a true rape victim can be incredibly
brutal. Many choose not to report.</p>

<br>

<p>There was an extensive study by one of the military services that had the false accusation rate at around fifty percent. They did far more investigative work than the self-reporting studies that are commonly used today. There may be something about the environment that encourages it there. There’s another study that has the false reporting rate in the tens of percent that I saw during the Duke Lacrosse case.</p>

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<p>I think in the case of the press reporting the names of the accused? This is a matter
of media irresponsibility.</p>

<br>

<p>They are in business to make a profit and they’re generally just barely surviving. So I expect the irresponsibility to continue. The records are public too so one person with a blog that just posts crime reports could do the damage.</p>

<br>

<p>You can’t say that every rape report which ends with no conviction is a “false”
accusation. To prove rape, in the absence of physical evidence and witnesses, can be
difficult.</p>

<br>

<p>The studies that I mentioned above did extensive work to identify false reports.</p>

<br>

<p>I believe in innocent until proven guilty, but for every time there is a non conviction,
there is not a false accusation. (though there are false accusations, to be sure.)</p>

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<p>I am a student of logic and statistics.</p>

<br>

<p>There are also many cases where a woman comes forward and then other women
come forward who were assaulted.</p>

<br>

<p>There are cases where women are serial false accusers.</p>

<br>

<p>So, probably the best solution would be to only report the names of the convicted.
But, yeah, that’s a problem with the way the media operates. So, good luck with that. </p>

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<p>Newton, now 49, was freed in July 2006 after serving nearly 22 years in prison for a rape, robbery and assault conviction. Newton had asked for DNA testing in 1994, but it wasn’t until 2005 that the city was able to locate a rape kit of biological samples taken from the victim. The genetic tests proved that he was not the perpetrator.</p>

<p>[Man</a> cleared in '84 rape wins $18.5M from NYC - US news - Crime & courts - msnbc.com](<a href=“http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39760576/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/t/false-rape-conviction-years-prison-now-million-award/]Man”>http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39760576/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/t/false-rape-conviction-years-prison-now-million-award/)</p>

<p>After prolonged periods of police interrogation, five teenagers - Yusef Salaam, Kevin Richardson, Antron McCray, Raymond Santana and Korey Wise - confessed to being involved in the attacks. At the time, the defendants were between 14 and 16 years of age. Richardson, McCray, Sanatana, and Wise all gave videotaped confessions.</p>

<p>The following year, all five teenagers were convicted, in two separate trials, of charges stemming from the attack. Yusef Salaam was tried as a juvenile and convicted of rape and assault. He was sentenced to five to ten years. </p>

<p>The investigation of the convictions of these five teenagers has raised questions regarding police coercion and false confessions, as well as, the vulnerability of juveniles during police interrogations. In retrospect, it is clear, these young men did not know where, how, or when the attack took place.</p>

<p>On December 19, 2002, on the recommendation of the Manhattan District Attorney, the convictions of the five men were overturned. Yusef Salaam served five and a half years for a crime he did not commit. </p>

<p>[The</a> Innocence Project - Know the Cases: Browse Profiles:Yusef Salaam](<a href=“http://www.innocenceproject.org/Content/Yusef_Salaam.php]The”>http://www.innocenceproject.org/Content/Yusef_Salaam.php)</p>

<p>Gene Bibbins served seventeen years of a life sentence after he was convicted in East Baton Rouge Parish of raping a thirteen-year-old girl in 1987. The young victim identified Gene while he was sitting in the back of a police car, after initially giving a different description of her attacker. Gene always maintained his innocence while in prison. With the support of the national Innocence Project he was given access to DNA testing after proving to a judge that he could be innocent. In March 2003 a judge overturned the conviction when DNA evidence excluded Gene as the rapist. In 2008, Gene was awarded a combined $1.15 million after successfully suing the city of Baton Rouge for police misconduct in his case. </p>

<p>[Gene</a> Bibbins | Innocence Project New Orleans](<a href=“http://www.ip-no.org/exoneree-profiles/non-ipno-exonerees/gene-bibbins]Gene”>http://www.ip-no.org/exoneree-profiles/non-ipno-exonerees/gene-bibbins)</p>

<p>Jerry Miller, 22 years old, with a good work record and no criminal background was charged with kidnapping, raping, and robbing a 44-year-old woman in a Rush Street parking garage in 1981. He was picked up by police after an officer said he resembled a sketch of a Chicago rapist. Miller was identified by parking garage attendants, but victim was not sure. Miller was released from prison in 2006.
DNA testing was not available at the time of crime, which was uncovered by Cook County state’s attorney’s office in 2007. DNA testing was done with sample form victim’s slip, which matched with the serial rapist Robert Weeks. Miller filed a lawsuit against the misrepresentation of data. According to him, he should have been exonerated in 1982 after DNA blood type testing. Type O blood group was identified in the semen sample from victim’s slip that time, while his blood type is Type B. Still Chicago Police crime lab technician, Raymond Lenz, gave the report as evidence is inconclusive. As result, Miller spent 25 years in prison.</p>

<p>[Man</a> In Prison for 25 Years for False Rape Conviction to get $6.3M | speakethics.com](<a href=“http://speakethics.com/social-issues/25-years-in-prison-for-false-rape-conviction-to-get-6-3m]Man”>http://speakethics.com/social-issues/25-years-in-prison-for-false-rape-conviction-to-get-6-3m)</p>

[cptofthehouse]

<p>There are also many rape situations that are not on record because it is clear that there is no proof and the victim does not want to go through the ordeal when the chances of even booking the accused is zilch. This is a serious accusation and there has to be more proof than the story that the alleged victim has. But whether there is enough proof or not if the accusation is levied, both accused and accuser has fall out.</p>

[Cardinal_Fang]

<p>It’s too bad that the false accusers in those two cases got off, and nobody here is defending them, but I can give you long lists of rapists who get off too, after having ruined the lives of their (very often multiple) victims.</p>

[Cardinal_Fang]

<p>

There was an extensive study by one of the military services that had the false accusation rate at around fifty percent.

</p>

<p>Cite? (ten char)</p>

<p>BCEagle, several of the cases you cite were not false rape allegations under any reasonable definition. Rather, they were cases of false identification. That is, the woman or girl was in fact raped, but (unintentionally) misidentified her attacker. It turns out people of both genders are surprisingly bad at eyewitness identification, particularly when identifying someone of another race. This is a serious problem in law enforcement, but not a problem unique to rape prosecutions.</p>

[BCEagle91]

<p>Forensic Science Digest, Vol. 11, No. 4, December 1985</p>

[Cardinal_Fang]

<p>BCEagle, you post that study as if it were representative of all studies that examined the prevalence of false rape allegations. It isn’t. It’s an outlier, dramatically higher than the results of other studies. That doesn’t mean it’s wrong, but it also doesn’t inspire confidence.</p>

[mini]

<p>Look at the date…</p>

[calimami]

<p>there’s a looooong history of false rape accusations in america.</p>

[mini]

<p>There’s a much longer history of rape going unpunished.</p>

[calimami]

<p>not gonna disagree with you. as a black american, i agree.</p>

[BCEagle91]

<br>

<p>you post that study as if it were representative of all studies that
examined the prevalence of false rape allegations.</p>

<br>

<p>Please elaborate. What words did I use to give you the impression that
it is representative of all studies. In fact I’ve mentioned several
times that the percentage of false claims is all over the place in
studies.</p>

<br>

<p>It isn’t. It’s an outlier, dramatically higher than the results of
other studies. That doesn’t mean it’s wrong, but it also doesn’t
inspire confidence.</p>

<br>

<p>There haven’t been a lot of studies that aren’t of the self-reported
kind. There are only two that I’m aware of. These kinds of studies
are a lot harder to do.</p>

<br>

<p>Look at the date… </p>

<br>

<p>Do you have a more recent study using similar methodology?</p>

<p>The other study of this kind that I’m aware of is more recent: 1994
and it’s the Kanin study.</p>

<br>

<p>not gonna disagree with you. as a black american, i agree.</p>

<br>

<p>The big exoneration numbers on the Innocence Project are black men
being incarcerated for raping white women. I think that the number
is about 58% of their total cases.</p>

[poetgrl]

<p>BC–</p>

<p>I’m trying to figure out what you are trying to prove.</p>

<p>Everyone on the thread has said, “yes there are false accusations.”</p>

<p>What else do you want?</p>

<p>Are you trying to say that men don’t rape women? That girls don’t get raped on college campuses? Are you trying to say that women should not report rape when it occurs because some have been falsely accused?</p>

<p>Since 1985 there have only been around 250 cases overturned on DNA, and I’m including murder in this. I mean, really? </p>

<p>I happen to support the Innocence project. I happen to be against the death penalty. But, if you are trying to say that women don’t get raped? I’m uninterested.</p>

<p>What do YOU think should be done about this?</p>

[BCEagle91]

<br>

<p>I’m trying to figure out what you are trying to prove.</p>

<p>Everyone on the thread has said, “yes there are false
accusations.”</p>

<p>What else do you want?</p>

<br>

<p>Most people say that there are false accusations and then add this
little “but”. The but is that the numbers are inconsequential and that
dealing with the ramifications of false accusations is just something
that some people have to manage.</p>

<br>

<p>Are you trying to say that men don’t rape women? That girls don’t
get raped on college campuses? Are you trying to say that women
should not report rape when it occurs because some have been falsely
accused?</p>

<br>

<p>Have I ever said this?</p>

<br>

<p>Since 1985 there have only been around 250 cases overturned on DNA,
and I’m including murder in this. I mean, really?</p>

<br>

<p>Do you think that there have only been 250 cases of people falsely
convicted?</p>

<br>

<p>I happen to support the Innocence project. I happen to be against
the death penalty. But, if you are trying to say that women don’t
get raped? I’m uninterested.</p>

<br>

<p>Have I ever said that? Why do you try to put words in my mouth?</p>

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<p>What do YOU think should be done about this? </p>

<br>

<p>I’m for more balance in the scales of justice.</p>

[poetgrl]

<p>

I’m for more balance in the scales of justice.

</p>

<p>Concretely, in practice, what does this mean to you? What do you believe ought to be done?</p>

[BCEagle91]

<p>Investigation before arrest and the removal of “you must believe the women”, even when the evidence doesn’t point that way.</p>

[cptofthehouse]

<p>The reason why date rape, in particular, is difficult to prosecute is because it is difficult to prove in a court of law. That is the simple fact of the matter. That is also why many rape victims do not want to press charges. The chances that there is enough proof for conviction is usually very small. That means a lot of grief, trouble, time, notoriety. The only satisfaction is that in most settings, the accused also gets the same.</p>

[Dad_of_3]

<p>Shall we say there are numerous cases of women being raped and the perp gets away, and numerous cases where innocent men are accused and sometimes convicted either because the woman was misinformed or because she lied, none of these being outliers? There are some things we’ve tacitly accepted - a woman who’s promiscuous is less credible than one who isn’t, and a woman’s accusation of rape trumps the alleged’s statement of innocence in areas such as anonymity and retribution if deliberately false.</p>

<p>Obviously there is no magic wand with which we can ensure we’re always on the side of the real victim and the real perp is always punished. So the question is how can we recalibrate the system we have to ensure more fairness without evoking unwanted side effects such as more unreported because of consequences of not proving guilt, or more false claims, or whatever. Above my pay grade.</p>

[BCEagle91]

<br>

<p>That is the simple fact of the matter. That is also why many rape victims do not want
to press charges.</p>

<br>

<p>No disagreement.</p>

<br>

<p>The only satisfaction is that in most settings, the accused also gets the same.</p>

<br>

<p>Unfortunately it also makes it an effective tool to get at someone that you don’t like.</p>

[cptofthehouse]

<p>One blogger who is usually pretty reasonable actually was stating that a prostitute who is raped in the course of doing her business should have a case. Hah! That’s my reply. Totally unwinnable without a video camera or witness. Yes, what you do as a matter of course does enter into the picture just as the alleged assailant’s pattern of behavior in similar situations would. </p>

<p>And, yes, it is an effective tool and a problem. That’s why you should avoid certain situations. There is that risk and it is a real one. When you sleep with the dogs, you are likely to get fleas.</p>

[kayf]

<p>I believe that the military and the Peace Corp do not take rape allocations seriously. And that includes homosexual rape. I hope our govt forces change. </p>

<p>Juries/courts dont always take a womans word. Look at the NYC police officer recently acquitted. He admitted to calling in a phony 911 call so he could go to the victimes apartment. His partner/buddy went with him to guard door. I beleive her story – the cops made no sense.</p>