" ... In 2015, Renata Singleton, an accountant in New Orleans, arrived at court in an orange jumpsuit, shackled at her hands and feet. But unlike the other inmates she was chained to, Singleton, a mother of three, hadn’t been accused of any crime. She was still jailed five days earlier on a $100,000 bond because the local district attorney obtained a warrant arguing that her detention was necessary to force her to testify against her ex-boyfriend, who was facing charges for abusing her. He came to court in his own clothes, pleaded guilty, and received no jail time. ... "


https://www.motherjones.com/crime-justice/2019/04/should-rape-victims-have-to-spend-time-in-jail-for-not-testifying/

WTF

Some would say she deserved it. I'm sure she made him feel inadequate. She probably had fantasies about men who made more money. (That was sarcasm).

Do not move to Louisiana.

It's beautiful
Pros & Cons...

Some laws,
Like anywhere,
Are created, and arbitrated, and interpreted, and carried out differently in different places

That's for sure

moremany Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> It's beautiful

Yes, living here in Mississippi, have been eternally grateful for Louisiana, the only state whose standards and practices consistently fall below ours.

I, at least, have never heard of that happening here.

Hi Dave, quick question: Why is the subject line "Jailing Rape Victims?"

I did a google search of Renata Singleton and rape never came up. She called the police against her ex-boyfriend because he broke her cell phone.

The police responded, then Renata said she didn't have the time of inclination to press charges. So they issued a fake subpoena (which is ridiculous) and when she refused to talk without an attorney they arrested her.

Where does rape come into play?

From the article linked above:

"The Louisiana bill, which recently advanced out of a state Senate committee and will now head for a floor vote, would prevent these warrants from being used against survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. "

"State Sen. J.P. Morrell, a Democrat from New Orleans, sponsored the bill after a watchdog group pointed out that the city’s district attorney temporarily jailed at least two women in 2016 who had survived rape and domestic violence. “In each instance, the witness testimony was deemed critical to preventing a dangerous offender from walking free to victimize others,” DA Leon Cannizzaro said in a statement about his use of the tactic."

Got it! So it wasn't Renata who was the alleged rape victim. Thanks!

Apparently she was just jailed under the same rational used in the other cases where someone alleges abuse (or rape) and is jailed "for the good of the public".

From reading the article, I understand the whole "being jailed for the good of the public" thing to be basically some women abused the system (i.e., calling the cops on their boyfriend / husband because they were mad at them) and then never moved forward with pressing charges which is a massive waste of resources.

Then, there were women who made serious allegations that should be prosecuted (like men raping women), then the women decide not to testify. As a last resort, the prosecutors were issuing fake subpoenas to get the women down there to testify so they could put these guys behind bars where they belonged.

Bad practice, which got even more out of hand.

It's hard not to see the prosecutor's point: there are rapists out there, potentially raping, and we have a good witness who could help put the guy behind bars, but they refuse to testify.

They clearly went about it the wrong way. No question there. But don't you think some of those victims could, if they don't testify, end up being complicit in future rapes?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/24/2019 04:11PM by honklermaga.

There's no question that it's better to put away a rapist if you can.

"But don't you think some of those victims could, if they don't testify, end up being complicit in future rapes?"

Answer: No. Just because someone has been raped does not mean the victim is responsible for another persons decision to rape someone else.

I'm having trouble with that.

If a woman was raped, and she knows who did it, why wouldn't she testify? Knowing that not testifying means he is free to continue raping? How is that not the same as her being ok with him continuing that behavior?

Because a lot of women don't want to be put through the ordeal of a trial where the defense will be that it was her fault for getting herself raped. I'm sure there are many, many reasons why a woman wouldn't want to go through that.

Edit to add: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-were-still-asking-why-survivors-dont-report-sexual-assault----and-how-we-can-change-2018-09-27

Not only do people not want to report it, for many reasons such as not being believed or being blamed for it, but they also have similar reasons for not wanting to go to trial if it is reported. Think of the recent case of Ms. Blasey Ford, who had to go underground due to death threats, etc.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/24/2019 05:54PM by Devoted Exmo.

I guess it's not as black and white as I think it is. I understand what you're saying, but surely she wouldn't want someone else to have to go through what she went through.

I'll think on it some more. Thanks.

Some rape victims would not be able to handle the trial process.

I was attacked once, long ago. I managed to escape. But the same man went on to attack/rape multiple other women. I reported it to the police right away and was perfectly willing to testify in court. In fact, I was flown out for the trial when they finally caught the perp. But I was the backup to the victim who was the worst hurt, and from what I was told, she did a great job. The prosecutors decided not to use me. The man was sentenced to decades in prison.

In the course of getting me ready for the trial, the prosecutors gave me a taste of what to expect. And yes, it's rather brutal on the victim. For instance, I was warned that I would be questioned on what I wore that night, why I was out after dark, etc. Everything about the sexual assault victim is called into question. It's like the victim is being put on trial. I was strong enough to handle it, but many women might not be.

Unfortunately the Louisiana law enforcement and legislative communities don't seem to understand that.

This answer is for the person above who thinks they are complicit in other attacks.

The trial victimizes the victim again.

It is horrible that it happens at all.

What makes this relevant to RfM is that BYU also punishes rape victims.

I feel for crime victims, hopefully they have enough courage/foresight to help prevent the guilty from going unpunished.


the method - rationalization is contempt of court for failing to testify; the accused cannot be forced to testify, but in rare cases, witnesses can be forced by a judge.

Therein lies the rub. Many victims *can't* insure that the guilty get punished. There's a lot that goes into that. One has to calculate the upside versus the downside to the situation.

Sure, they can't ensure the guilty get punished. But they can guarantee the guilty don't get punished if they don't even try. That's what I'm having trouble reconciling still.

It would entirely depend on the circumstances.

Did you read the article I linked above? It's a very complex calculation for anyone to chose to go through the process.

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-were-still-asking-why-survivors-dont-report-sexual-assault----and-how-we-can-change-2018-09-27

I did. I just wish more women were strong like Summer. I'm not saying their weakness is their fault, just don't like the idea that they have some power to put away rapists and then don't.

Sometimes, it's not just about one person. People have lots of considerations.

Here's a bit more information on what to expect when a survivor is involved in a crime and then the criminal justice system:

https://www.rainn.org/articles/what-expect-criminal-justice-system

"Out of every 1000 instances of rape, only 13 cases get referred to a prosecutor, and only 7 cases will lead to a felony conviction."

There are many, complex reasons for these statistics. It's not just that victims won't use their power to stop a rapist.

The trouble is that rape is the most intimate kind of violation for a woman. It's not like testifying in front of a jury for a robbery (which I have done.) And as I explained, a defendant's lawyer will do everything to try to tear down a victim's testimony. This has the effect of making the woman feel victimized all over again. Many woman *can not* handle a second victimization.

Sometimes a woman emerges from an episode of sexual violence in extremely vulnerable shape. People kill themselves over such things. And if a person is struggling to survive and is then subjected to the legal process, or humiliated on the stand, or has her testimony rejected by a jury, it can push that person over the edge.

A victim should always press charges and move forward--if she can.