...2 Cases Challenge Statutory Rape Law July 14, 1992|By Jim Runnels of The Sentinel Staff TAVARES — A circuit judge was asked Monday to strike down Florida's statutory rape law in two Lake County cases where the teens involved consented to sex. Circuit Judge Jerry Lockett said during a hearing Monday that he will rule in writing within 10 days and decide whether Florida's right-to-privacy law gives teens the right to have sex when they want and with whom they choose. Such a ruling would be a landmark decision in the state, because judges repeatedly - all the way back to a case heard by the Florida Supreme Court in 1901 - have ruled that consent is not a defense in statutory rape cases. Under current law, any person over the age of 18 who has sex with an unmarried person under the age of 16 can be charged with statutory rape. If the juvenile is over the age of 16 and is of ''previous chaste character'' - meaning a virgin - the same law applies. Statutory rape is a second-degree felony, punishable by up to 15 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. But in 1980, Florida voters approved Article 1, Section 23 of the Florida Constitution that says each person in the state ''has the right to be left alone and free from governmental intrusion into his private life.'' That didn't mean much until the case of a Lake County teen, identified publicly as T. W., reached the Florida Supreme Court in 1990. In that case, the teen wanted an abortion, and claimed that she alone - not her parents...
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...Western Pennsylvania Farmhouse could not have foreseen the events that were yet to be unfolded. She was eight months pregnant and was shot by 11 year old. Neither could an 8 year old girl who was raped by a 14 year old boy in Kent, Washington. Nor could the 23 year old female physiotherapy intern who was beaten, assaulted and gang raped by 6 men in a moving private bus, where one of the assaulters was a 17 and half year old. These incidents have shocked the conscience of humanity. The tragic link between the three cases across different jurisdictions is increasing number of heinous crimes committed by juveniles. In the first case Jordan Brown was charged for shooting and adjudicated guilty. He was initially tried as an adult but after spending three years in detention he was tried as a juvenile. In the second case, the 14 year old was initially booked into juvenile detention for rape but later was charged as an adult with heavy fine. While in the ‘Delhi Gang-Rape Case’ the 17 and half year old boy was tried as a juvenile and was sent to detention facility for a period of 3 years. Comparing the juvenile justice laws as USA had not ratified the...
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...seen in rape cases is a widespread disagreement between opposing parties arguing yes vs. a typical victim-blamers. Victim blamers usually argue it’s the victim’s fault because of the way they were dressed, the time or location being heavily opposed to the victim’s favor and the victim should’ve been wary, therefore it’s the victims fault. In essence, those who blame the victim, try to pin the rape as a result of something the victim did rather than blaming the rapist. When in reality, it’s the rapist who is the only one at fault. However, many who are typically strong against victim blaming fail to see the difference between ignorant victim blamers who do everything in their power to see the victim at...
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...Reason Case was accepted for investigation: On 7/29/17, Hennepin County Child Protection accepted a report of alleged physical abuse, domestic violence involving Mohamed by his stepfather, Hussein Mohamed. Per reporter Rahma’s husband is physically abusive to her. Per reporter police report was generated following a domestic altercation. Per reporter Rahma tried to contact police during an argument, Hussein stated” if you walk out of here alive, you can call the police then.” Hussein then pushed Rahma backward causing her to hit her head and black out. Per reporter witnesses reported observing Hussein stomping on Rahma’s head and kicking Rahma in the face. Per reporter Rehama was transported to the hospital where she was treated for significant injuries....
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...Mr Trump's ex-wife Ivana previously accused him of "raping" her during their divorce in 1991 - though she later said it was not in "a literal or criminal sense". She accused him of rape after he allegedly ripped her clothes off to have sex with her in a "violent assault". http://ow.ly/YsOI3056PLn He was also charged with raping a 13-year old girl. You can download the lawsuit papers here. They were filed in the US Court of Southern District of NY - http://ow.ly/nJhE3056PWX Regarding the Hillary, and the rapist, facts, facts, facts. WHAT'S TRUE: In 1975, young lawyer Hillary Rodham was appointed to represent a defendant charged with raping a 12-year-old girl. Clinton reluctantly took on the case, which ended with a plea bargain for the defendant. "I plea bargained it down because it turned out they didn't have any evidence," says Clinton....
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...False Rape Accusations, Societal Impacts, and Legal Solutions Rape, time and time again, have been reported throughout documented human history. From the rape of Lucretius, to the ‘rape’ of Sabine women+ it is not difficult to understand why stringent regulations have been made in regard to prevent the crime. In certain countries, it is even punishable by death. *As a crime against a person, rape brings about horrifying long-term effects to the victim, usually followed by lingering sentiments of guilt and shame. To discuss the notion of falsification might be callous in face of such an atrocious crime, yet to deny the existence of it would be a logical fallacy. Compassion and justice are companions, not choices (1); therefore, we are compelled to analyze and gather information. By doing so, we are not being callous ourselves; instead, we are trying to devise constructive strategies to bring about impartiality and justice. Of the many debates surrounding the crime of rape, many more arise regarding false accusations. In regard to the rape scandals surrounding business leaders in recent years, most notably Dominique Strauss Kahn, this paper aims to address the issue of false rape accusations. More often than not, false rape allegations are portrayed by media outlets as unfounded rape, which is usually not the case. Unfounded rapes represent the circumstances which undermine efforts to arrest or to convict the perpetrator. False rape allegations, however, solely refer to...
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...Rape Culture A thesis statement Culture, which is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as “the beliefs and customs of a particular society, place, or time”, is vital to society, but some cultural patterns are destructive. The words of Susan Griffin, “I have never been free from the fear of rape”, reflect what is today known as rape culture. Rape culture describes a culture wherein rape is prevalent and normalized. The term was first used in the 1970’s, when feminists were trying to raise awareness about rape. Rape culture practices victim-blaming and denies the occurrence of men being raped. It can be a form of discrimination as it trivializes rape depending on the gender, age, race, and religion of both suspect and victim. One of the impacts of rape culture is that it greatly influences rape cases. Legally, rape is defined as sexual intercourse by a male and female, other than his wife/husband, without the consent of the person and is effected by force, intimidation, or deception as to the nature of the act (Herman 1984). This makes it very difficult for wives who have sexually abusive husbands and vice versa and for male and some victims to prove that a crime happened. Due to this, some countries abandoned the term “rape” for ‘sexual assault’, ‘sexual intercourse without consent’, and ‘criminal sexual conduct’ to address the crime easier. Many in today’s society deny the existence of rape culture in the country because of the low statistics. However, rape...
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...Justice for Rape Survivors, an “At Risk Population” and Ways of Advocating for Them Emily R. Cazier North Idaho College Social Work 240 Kateri Ray Abstract This paper defines the “at risk population” of rape survivors in the United States. Sources for this paper were found through peer-reviewed academic papers and articles, websites for organizations that advocate for victims of sexual assault and rape, and legislative bills from the state of Idaho. This paper also seeks to define the social justice issues, legal and political issues, and advocation for these victims on the micro, mezzo, and macro levels of society. Keywords: rape, rape victims, and advocating Social Justice for Rape Survivors, an “At Risk Population” and Ways of Advocating for Them Definition of the “at risk population”: The definition of rape and survivors of rape varies around the world and especially differs from state to state within the United States of America. In the advocacy community, victims of sexual assault are generally referred to as survivors because they have survived a horrible event. (Cazier, 2013) For the purpose of this paper and in keeping with that belief, I will also refer to these individuals as survivors. According to RAINN (Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network) the general definition of rape in the United States is, “forced sexual intercourse, including vaginal, anal, or oral penetration. Penetration may be by a body part or object.” In order for the term rape is apply...
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...Rape: A Modern Crime RAPE: A MODERN CRIME The definition of forcible rape was established in the 1920s and has remained relatively unchanged since that time. According to the FBIs website, rape is narrowly defined as “The penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.” While the FBIs Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) shows that rape statistics have dropped from 2002 to 2010, it’s difficult to verify if these statistics are accurate. There are two major factors that skew the statistics for reported rape cases. First, rape often goes unreported by victims due to embarrassment or fear of reprisal by the perpetrator(s). Secondly, the narrow definition of rape excludes the number of cases reported by would be victims. Fortunately, the definition of rape was revamped in 2012 and has broadened the reporting criteria for this terrible crime. Changes include the perpetrator gender, physical resistance and the instances in which the victim is incapable of giving consent (Affairs, 2012). These changes will undoubtedly change the number of reported rapes committed and impact crime statistics greatly. It was just another ordinary summer day on July 6, 2011 in Stafford, Virginia. The sun was shining, birds sang their songs and children could be hear playing about. For one woman, this ordinary day would turn into...
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...procedural law therefore comprises of rules to be adhered to by a court while hearing and determining criminal as well as civil cases. This paper intends to analyze from the substantive law point of view of the unfolding events within the movie “The Accused” as written by Tom Topper in 1988 (Ebert para 1-10). The movie is a description of unfortunate happenings that involve Sarah Tobias who is the accused of luring herself into the unfortunate rape ordeal and who is accused of the same. Moreover, in a rather twisty way, the case moves from her accusation and she becomes the accuser in trying to seek justice for her own misfortune. The movie therefore depicts that rape victims would stand to be accused in causing it to happen. The drunkards in the bar where she goes and drinks uncontrollably, shows the substantive sides of the legal movie through the abuse of Tobias rights. The drunkard men blamed the accused for first over-drunkard-ness after which she engaged in provocative dance, which leads to her rape. Under the substantive law provisions, the public (represented by the people who were drinking within the bar at the time of the happening) had the right to disciplined dance by the accused, which was not observed when the accused engaged in dancing provocatively. On the other hand, the accused had the right to personal security as against the assault through rape and...
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...prosecution as a result of the attack. Just in case the victim was afraid to report the assault she needs to know the Rape Shield Law expressly rule out the use of evidence of a victim's past sexual history to weaken that victim's credibility. This law is intended to protect victims from invasions of their privacy, and to encourage them to come forward without having to fear that their sexual history being used against them to hinder their case in any possible way [ (LaMance, 2011) ]. Being a Victim of a Sexual Assault After researching the issue of rape and victims’ rights it appears this will be a hard case to prove in both the civil and criminal courts systems. The accusation of rape usually comes down to he said, she said testimonies and because of that rape is a very sensitive subject to be addressed [ (Hill, 2012) ]. Rape is an assault that is so easily committed and often the term is misused and abused by people who want to get back at a spouse or lover. Some people even engage in consensual sex and when things don’t turn out the way they like they claim to be raped. These kinds of situations make it hard for people who have really been the victim of an actual sexual assault. To pursue a civil case there will be deciding factors that play a major role in determining the preponderance of the evidence and clear and convincing evidence to prove that the client was actually raped. A very important issue raised in any case is if the victim was involved in an...
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...my opinion is Rape. I feel rape is media biggest controversy. I’m from India and people still today in this day and age feel that women invite rape which has caused a big issue in India. Not too long ago in 2012 a 21 year of medical student was raped why only because she was roaming around at 8:30 pm at night. This rape case had caused the biggest controversy in the history of media news in India. Because everyone all over India was doing a candle stand for the victim. There were five guys that had raped the girl. She was going home with her guy friend at 8:30 after watching a movie they were not able to find a taxi so decided to go on a bus. They injured the guy so much and threw him out the bus and all the five guys raped and injured every part of her bone and insides so bad that within 23 hour she had gone through five surgeries. Recently one of the journalist interviewed the victims and they said the girl provoked them to rape her she is a girl she is not supposed to roam around at night time and shouldn’t be wearing short clothes. It’s actually very sad to see how people still think so down about women. Even though that women power the world now they are smarter than men and they are willing to do anything nowadays. They care of a child alone and raise them right. Young girls continue to be victims of incestuous assault in their homes; if a woman walks alone at night, she walks in endless fear; our judicial system continues to put a victim of rape through a humiliating...
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...ROLE OF MEDIA IN CONDEMNING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN Ankita Yadav LL.M.- 2nd Semester Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University Phone No. -9453014362 Email Address- ankita2189yadav@gmail.com INTRODUCTION The media's the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and that's power. Because they control the minds of the masses. - Malcolm X Media is considered fourth pillar of a country thus it has lots of responsibility towards society. Media in a democratic country is considered to be a pedagogue of freedom and making society aware about the realities by reporting. It has to reflect the realities of society and report the truth in order to protect the basic human rights especially of marginalised sections of society like women. In Indian society, woman occupies a vital position but unfortunately venerable place. The Vedas glorified women as the mother, the creator, one who gives life and worshipped her as a ‘Devi’ or Goddess. It can be inferred via a relatively high position occupied by the women in Rig Vedic era, where they were part of the governance institutes like Sabha and Samiti. India's major religion i.e Hinduism portrays women as a representation of power i.e. Shakti in the form of Durga and Kali. From Vedic period onwards to the mid of 19th century, the condition of women kept on deteriorating. They were excluded from education, property and cultural rituals, and their primary...
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...violence, is researching the motives of a rapist. This proves that David Lisak has the qualifications to talk and publish the facts, statistics, and motives of a rapist. The public would want to hear exactly what has happened to the victims who have been raped on college campuses, because they can help prevent a future rape case in their community. Dr. Lisak’s research has helped influence the public to take precautions and lecture their sons, daughters, friends, loved ones, or anyone who goes to college, about college rape, before it becomes a problem. Another way Dick and Ziering present their message is through ethos with someone else other than Dr. Lisak. They involve a discussion with a former police officer from the University of Notre Dame. The officer gave bad press to the University of Notre Dame because they did not handle rape cases seriously. For instance, he was prevented from questioning a student who was accused of rape, because the student was a football star at the University of Notre Dame and they wanted him to still participate in the football games without being excluded. This proves that the University of Notre Dame does not want rape cases to be payed attention to. Investigations like this makes the audience mad because the authorities can’t provide information to the public and they want answers. The University of Notre Dame will always hide the truth for reputation Through the use of ethos, Dick and Ziering are able to provide credibility to the audience...
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...Marital Rape By Amy Hoekwater December 21, 2012 AMU/CMRJ306 Prof. Natasha Richardson After murder, alone in the United States of America, the prevalence of rape is happened to be second crime that every two minutes sexual harassment case is reported. The most consistent and trustworthy study on the crime was conducted by the US Department of Justice's National Crime Victimization. The study highlights that during the year 2007, about 248,300 sexual harassment cases reported. In the United States, there are various definitions have been drafted to describe the act since it is regarded as a most complicated topic. The spousal rape is characterized as non-consensual and unwanted sex by victims’ spouse, when women surrender due to force or threat or when she don’t want to cohabit (Bergen,1996; Pagelow, 1984; Russell, 1990) According to the findings of the researcher, mostly married women were the victims of force-only sex. The ratio ranges between 10% and 14% (Finkelhor & Yllo, 1985; Russell, 1990). This crime ignored by law, practitioner, social scientists, criminal justice organism and by society too. By 1970, emerged as society and started recognizing that in marital relation rape cold also happen. With the development of time and maturity of law, legal community thought to start or compile work on this significant topic since it is said that wives since taken as personal asset of the husband and that husbands has right to have criminalized rape in marriage...
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