My Two Cents

I must say, I haven't watched any of this coverage, and I'm not going to--simply because, having some experience working in the criminal justice system, my view is skewed.  However, looking at the sample statements from CNN, I don't see them saying, "Hey, let's blame the victim!"  I see them saying, "what is the impact of the criminal justice system on individuals and on society as a whole?  How does the youthfulness and scientifically-proven-lack-of-brain-development-due-to-youth make this different from a case where the convicted are adults?"  I also see some hesitation on labeling the convicted as truly guilty.  Which also isn't the same thing as blaming the victim--not even close.

Rape is horrible, blaming the victim is horrible, no one disputes that.  But every single accused person has the right to a fair trial and a fair sentence, regardless of how horrible the act, and every single person has the right of the presumption of innocence.  While we shouldn't make the victim prove her innocence, it is morally right and Constitutionally guaranteed that we force the prosecutors to prove, beyond reasonable doubt, that the accused is guilty--again, no matter what the alleged crime was.  What I'm seeing all over Facebook and Twitter is a complete disregard for the concepts of presumption of innocence, the right to a fair trial, and the right to a fair sentence.  And that's disgusting, it really is.  I think every single person in the U.S. should be arrested and charged for something he/she did not do.  It's an invaluable perspective.

I have to believe there is some sort of third way between "Blame the victim" and "throw out Constitutional rights for those accused of rape and automatically determining someone is guilty simply because he is male."  Rape is a horrible crime, and we need to tackle it on multiple fronts.  But we cannot let horrible crimes turn us into horrible people, Hellbent on revenge, retribution, withdrawing rights from those accused, removing due process and replacing it with trials by media and/or Star Courts.  And these sort of petitions are simply that--efforts to make those who have hurt others into inhuman monsters, undeserving of Constitutional protections.

I abhor rape.  I think rapists are sick bastards who need help and, yes, punishment as well.  That being said, I cannot in good conscience side with people who are against due process and who would pervert justice  so blatantly.  I think there is a better way, a more constructive way, a way that relies on healing instead of revenge, to deal with these issues, and calling out CNN for merely speculating on the effect of our current rape laws on individuals and society--from the comments I've seen--is hatred-based and simply counterproductive.  We can acknowledge the problems with trying people for rape--the destruction of the presumption of innocence, the frankly un-Constitutional so-called "rape shield" laws, etc.--without going all the way to the bad old days of blaming the victim.  We can acknowledge that every once in a blue moon a woman might falsely accuse a man of rape without saying that it happens in a majority of cases--or even a decent minority of cases!  We can require the prosecution to prove guilt--as in EVERY OTHER CASE--and require the jurors to be convinced beyond all reasonable doubt that the accused are guilty without going back to trying the victim.  We can question whether or not the sentences handed down are really effective in deterring rape, in rehabilitating the offender, without blaming the victim.  We can!  Honestly!  It's not impossible, I swear.  But, as society often does, the so-called "good guys" looking out for the victim (supposedly) have decided to throw out the baby (Constitutional rights and whatnot) with the bathwater (blaming a rape victim).  And that makes them bad guys as well.  Period.  It doesn't make those who blame the victim the good guys, it just makes BOTH sides the bad guys.

And if you don't like that?  Well, tough.  It's the truth.

I am Angry.

I may or may not write in this blog.  However, I am reading this article and getting angrier by the minute.  While I am soothed that many law school graduates are in my position, I'm getting more and more pissed off at the absolute fraud that's going on.  I was told to work hard, network, get good grades, and I would be successful in the legal field.  I graduated with honors, interned for the State PD office, externed (that looks wrong) by helping prosecute misdemeanors for Ramsey County, networked by doing a ton of informational interviews and the job market died.

Great.

More on how everything is wrong, and how I think things could be helped, later.  Maybe.