A petition containing thousands of signatures is calling on the judge to step down.
Here's the story:
"'Arizona Judge Issues Apology to Victim of Groping'
azcentral staff and wire reports
7 September 2012
"A judge who told a woman groped by a state police officer at a Flagstaff bar that she wouldn't have been violated had she not been at the establishment issued an apology . . . for any anguish she caused the victim.
"Judge Jacqueline Hatch of Coconino County Superior Court said the comments she made Wednesday during a sentencing hearing were poorly communicated and she failed to uphold her responsibility to ensure that defendants and victims are treated fairly and with respect in the courtroom.
"'It was never my intention to make a situation worse for any victim,' she said in a statement. 'I have learned an important lesson and will apply what I have learned to future cases, to ensure that the rights and views of all victims are heard and respected.'
"Hatch also added that victims should not be blamed for coming forward to report crimes.
"A jury found Robb Gary Evans, 43, guilty of felony sexual abuse after a July trial. Hatch sentenced the former Department of Public Safety [DPS] officer on Wednesday to two years' probation, community service and treatment. Evans, who was off duty at the time, walked up behind the victim in the bar, put his hand up her skirt and began groping her.
"DPS fired him after his conviction.
"The woman, whose identity is withheld because she is a sexual-abuse victim, accepted the judge's apology and hoped 'on a global level, there is a deeper understanding of how it feels like to be a victim, and what a difficult role it is to carry out.'
"'The initial comments made in to me in the courtroom were unnecessary, and I appreciate her for acknowledging that,' she said.
"In a telephone interview with the 'Daily Sun' . . , , the victim demanded an apology from Hatch. Despite the judge's explanation that the victim wasn't to blame in the case, the woman felt that Hatch accused her of allowing herself to become a victim.
"'If you wouldn't have been there that night, none of this would have happened to you,' Hatch told the woman.
"The judge added that all women must be vigilant against becoming victims. Even going to the grocery store after 10 p.m. can be dangerous, Hatch said.
"The 'Daily Sun' wrote in an editorial that while Hatch likely meant well by telling the victim to avoid unnecessary risks, the victim should not have been subjected to a public lecture for standing up for herself after being violated.
"'For Hatch to use the occasion to give the victim a lecture on risk avoidance, however well-intentioned, marginalizes the courage it took for the victim of a stigmatized crime like sex abuse to come forward,' the newspaper wrote.
"Hatch's comments generated a stir online, with an online petition garnering thousands of signatures calling for the judge to resign.
"County spokesman Nathan Gonzalez said Hatch has no intention of stepping down.
"Gov. Jan Brewer in June 2010 appointed the Republican Hatch to the bench. Hatch was elected to a full term that November. Her seat will be up for election in 2014."
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2012/09/07/20120907arizona-groping-victim-wants-apology-judges-comments.html#ixzz25qjh06cz_____
No behind-bars sentence for convicted bar groper:
"No jail time for Flagstaff cop in bar groping
by Eric Betz
"Arizona Daily Sun"
online, dated 8 September 2012
"After being convicted by a jury earlier this summer of sexual abuse for groping a woman in a bar, ex-DPS Officer Robb Gary Evans walked out of a Coconino County Superior Courtroom on Wednesday morning having been sentenced to two years of probation.
"Evans received credit for the four days of jail time he served in Coconino County jail.
"Prosecutors contended that he drank eight beers and then drove himself to the Green Room, where he flashed his badge in an attempt to get into a concert for free. While inside, he walked up behind the victim, who was a friend of a friend, put his hand up her skirt and then ran his fingers across her genitals.
"When bouncers threw him out, Evans told them he was a cop and they would be arrested.
"The 43-year-old former Arizona Department of Public Safety officer was facing between six months and 2 1/2 years in prison, but the crime was eligible for probation. He will not be required to register as a sex offender, according to the sentence.
"The judge said she considered the defendant's lack of a criminal record and strong community support in her sentencing.
"She also advised the victim to be more vigilant.
"BAD THINGS CAN HAPPEN IN BARS
"A jury convicted Evans of sexual abuse, a class 5 felony, on July 2.
"DPS fired Evans shortly after his criminal conviction and following an internal investigation, according to officials.
"The judge sentencing Evans, Coconino County Superior Court Judge Jacqueline Hatch, said she hoped both the defendant and the victim would take lessons away from the case.
"Bad things can happen in bars, Hatch told the victim, adding that other people might be more intoxicated than she was.
"'If you wouldn't have been there that night, none of this would have happened to you,' Hatch said.
"Hatch told the victim and the defendant that no one would be happy with the sentence she gave, but that finding an appropriate sentence was her duty.
"'I hope you look at what you've been through and try to take something positive out of it,' Hatch said to the victim in court. 'You learned a lesson about friendship and you learned a lesson about vulnerability.'
"Hatch said that the victim was not to blame in the case, but that all women must be vigilant against becoming victims.
"'When you blame others, you give up your power to change,' Hatch said that her mother used to say.
"VICTIM HOPES OTHERS STAND UP
"The victim, a local Flagstaff professional, told the court that she had been harshly criticized by members of the community and even friends who accused her of ruining the defendant's life by pursuing prosecution.
"'I sincerely hope this trial will prevent other women from being victimized in the future,' she said. 'I am more exhausted than I have ever been. I stood up for what happened to me for reasons bigger than me.'
"Evans also pinched another woman on the buttocks an hour before sexually abusing the victim in this case, according to a witness. The judge ruled before trial that the incident would be prejudicial if it was allowed to be admitted as evidence.
"When asked for comment, Coconino County Attorney David Rozema said that the victim's character and commitment in this case were a key part of the prosecution and subsequent conviction by the jury.
"He said that more victims are now reporting sex crimes and called their courage 'exemplary.'
"'Victims need to feel safe to report and assist prosecution,' Rozema said. 'They bear no responsibility for the actions of those who commit sex crimes against them. Offenders alone must be held accountable.'
"VERDICT QUESTIONED
"Before the sentencing, character witnesses for the defendant questioned the jury's guilty verdict.
"Prosecutors criticized that testimony, which was given in person and by letter, as trying to cast Evans as the victim of some conspiracy by detectives, prosecutors, bouncers at the Green Room and the victim herself. Some 25 letters were submitted on Evans' behalf, many from current and former law enforcement officers.
"Deputy Coconino County Attorney Jonathan Mosher said that he was not asking for any greater punishment for Evans because he was a cop, but simply that he not be granted any less of a punishment, either.
"A woman who said she was a former intimate partner of Evans told the judge that the behavior was completely out of character for the defendant.
"'His losses at this point go farther than anything that could be handed down here,' she said.
"The woman said Evans has lost his job and will likely lose his house because of it. She also said that because he's now a felon, he will have lost the ability to hunt, which numerous "hunting buddies" told the court was one of Evans' chief passions.
"His defense attorney said he was also disturbed that he would no longer be able to vote.
"ASKING FOR LENIENCY
"'These people put their lives on the line every day,' Evan's former partner said. 'I hope you'll be lenient on him. To me, this is one way we can give a little back to those in law enforcement who give so much to us everyday.'
"Others also asked for leniency.
"'I don't necessarily agree with the way this case got to be here,' former Flagstaff Police Lt. Randy Weems told the judge.
"Weems was recently a candidate for Flagstaff chief of police.
"'This is the second time in 25 years that I feel the system didn't work,' he later added.
"Evans' defense attorney, Bruce Griffen, picked up on that same line of argument, referring to it as a 'very disputed case.'
"'Sometimes, the bigger you are, the harder you fall in this line of work,' he said.
"Griffen did concede that his client likely should not have been in a bar that night and been so intoxicated, but he said Evans had not entered a bar since his arrest.
"Judge Hatch expressed her concern with the amount of alcohol Evans drank that day and said that "Joe blow" would have been considered dangerous if he were driving.
"'As a law enforcement officer you're held to a higher standard,' Hatch said. 'If you didn't want to be held to a higher standard you shouldn't have become a law enforcement officer.'
"In addition to probation, Hatch sentenced the defendant to 100 hours of community service and prohibited him from possessing or consuming alcohol during his probation.
"If Evans breaks any part of his probation, he could still be sentenced to as much as 2 1/2 years in prison."
http://azdailysun.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/article_0aa8be56-f7a3-11e1-b804-0019bb2963f4.html_____
More on the petition drive demanding the judge step down:
"'3,000 Petition Signatures, Still No Response from Hatch
by Eric Betz
"Arizona Daily Sun"
7 September 2012
"An online petition calling for the resignation of Coconino County Superior Court Judge Jacqueline Hatch has now reached 3,000 signature
"The petition, which features signatures from people all over the country, says that Hatch should 'step down before overseeing another sexual assault case.'
"Hatch caused an outcry when her comments to a sexual abuse victim were seen as telling a woman that she shouldn't have been in a bar the night an Arizona Department of Public Safety Officer groped her.
"'It felt like she was saying to me, "If you wouldn't have been there that night, it wouldn't have happened to you,"' the victim told the 'Daily Sun.' 'Yeah, well it probably would have happened to someone else.'
"The victim has asked Hatch to apologize for her remarks, which she called 'inappropriate.'
"Members of the public have been voicing their displeasure with the judge via social media and in comments online left on 'Daily Sun' stories. . . ."
http://azdailysun.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/petition-signatures-still-no-response-from-hatch/article_b927976e-f914-11e1-a7e3-0019bb2963f4.html_____
Columnist commentary:
"'Groper Gets Probation While Victim Gets a Lecture'
Laurie Roberts
"Arizona Republic"
online, dated 8 September 2012
"A state police officer gets drunk, gets in his car and drives to a Flagstaff bar, where he proceeds to put his hand under a woman’s skirt and skim his fingers across her genitals.
"He gets probation. She gets a lecture.
"From the judge.
"A female judge, no less.
“'If you wouldn’t have been there that night, none of this would have happened to you,' Coconino County Superior Court Judge Jacqueline Hatch told the victim this week.
"Translation: you asked for it.
"The judge’s remarks have created a stir in Flagstaff.
“'I’m not necessarily sure I’m surprised,' Myra Ferell-Womochil, director of community-based services for Northland Family Help Center, told me. 'It’s not to reflect on this one particular judge, It’s to reflect on the culture at large. When 25% of the female population has been sexually assaulted or been victims of attempted assault, that means it’s normal. This is a normal occurrence.'
"Clearly then, it’s time for a new normal.
"There is just so much wrong with this story I hardly know where to start. So let’s go back to the beginning, as reported by . . . the 'Arizona Daily Sun.'
"Department of Public Safety Officer Robb Gary Evans, 43, knocks back eight beers on a summer night in 2011, according to prosecutors, then drives himself to the Green Room, a bar in downtown Flagstaff, where he flashes his badge in order to get in without having to pay the cover charge.
"He proceeds to ooze charm and sophistication throughout the nightclub, pinching one woman on her backside, according to a witness, then groping the victim, the friend of a friend.
"She complains and he gets tossed out of the bar, whereupon our hero announces that he’s a cop and the bouncers would be arrested.
"The woman decides to prosecute and loses some friends in the process, people who evidently don’t find it particularly offensive to have some stranger’s paws all up into her business. Either that, or they just don’t believe that a woman should stand up for herself.
"A trial is held in July and a jury in finds the groper guilty of sexual abuse, a class-five felony, punishable by up to two-and-one-half years in prison.
"Evans’ pals and even a former candidate for Flagstaff chief of police question the verdict and on Wednesday they asked the judge to go easy on their friend, who was fired as a result of his felony conviction. I particularly like the plea delivered by an old girlfriend.
“'These people put their lives on the line every day,' she told the judge. 'I hope you’ll be lenient on him. To me, this is one way we can give a little back to those in law enforcement who give so much to us every day.'
"Oh for the days when a simple thank-you-officer was enough, but I digress.
"The real shocker in this case came not from friends and police officers who brushed off this guy’s conduct.
"Not from the minimal sentence imposed by Judge Hatch: probation plus community service.
"Not even from Hatch’s decision to spare Evans from having to register as a sex offender--something that would have been mandatory had his victim been underage.
"The stunner was judge’s if-you-hadn’t-been-there lecture.
"After blaming the victim, the judge went on to explain that she wasn’t blaming the victim but that women must be vigilant against becoming victims.
“'When you blame others,' she said, 'you give up your power to change.'
"In other words, it’s the victim’s fault that some drunk cop fondled her. . . .
"Hatch didn’t return a call to explain her philosophy on victims of sex crimes but she did issue an apology . . . , saying her comments were 'poorly communicated.' . . .
"What’s indisputable is that a jury has spoken and so has a judge--loud and clear.
"And you wonder why victims of sexual assault are reluctant to come forward?"
http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/LaurieRoberts/Edited 9 time(s). Last edit at 09/08/2012 01:42AM by steve benson.