This week, in the US, there has been a lot of media coverage of the outrage of thousands of people regarding the a case between a "Jane Doe" rape victim and a now convicted college student with a background of having a sports (potential Olympic swimmer) scholarship with a prestigious university and a family with presumably $ connections who were able to acquire the services of a powerful attorney and judge who collectively gave the convicted rapist a light sentence of 6 months jail term in a county jail for which he might only have to serve 3 months for good behaviour.
When I first read about the case on the news and Facebook articles, I thought it sounded like a TV movie often seen on US themes and society, however, this particular crime has hit the heartland of America in the inconsistencies that it has regarding the rights of women; the advantages or injustices of "white" money, power and influence and a similar case of an African American man who earlier faced a similar trial but was sentenced to a mandatory 15 years in prison.
However, it was the 'impact statement' that I read which made a great impact on me, in the victim's ordeal in the statement of what she went through and having been exposed, in many ways, to the ridicule of the American justice system and what she has had to experience. I would recommend for people to read it, although it is of a graphic nature and not something to be read lightly but has rung true with many rape victims around the world and her life will be forever changed.
She is the true hero of the story, in exposing what she should never have had to go through as well as the two graduate cyclists who rode past the scene, in realising that she wasn't moving, tackled the now convicted rapist as he tried to run away from the scene of the crime and held him until the police came. With a jury of 12 people who unanimously agreed to his guilt on 3 counts, he definitely should have gotten a longer sentence.
There are a lot more details regarding this case with the crime scene set around the background of a College party with plenty of alcohol available and with the victim loosing consciousness and memory to then be confronted with the scene of waking up in a hospital with details of what happened to her. I can only pray for the victim, her family and friends that somehow, something good will eventually come to her as a result of this horrendous crime on her life and those of her loved ones. Something to not take lightly...
No comments:
Post a Comment