By Kristin Kelley
Before the #MeToo and #TimesUp Movement, perpetrators of sexual violence were rarely held accountable, and often given passes, all while shaming the survivors of their assaults. The demand for accountability has increased and grabbed the attention of society. Men in power, such as Harvey Weinstein, Matt Lauer, R. Kelly, Billy Cosby and Larry Nassar, are finally being held accountable for sexual harassment and stripped of their power. Any survivor that has the opportunity to speak their truth and be met with support rather than doubt, is truly a step in the right direction. But sometimes it seems like as we are taking great strides forward in holding perpetrators accountable, we come across situations, like a recent decision in New Jersey, that reminds us…the fight against sexual violence is long but over.
The case involves a 16-year old teenage boy who was accused of raping a teenage girl at a party in a basement while she was intoxicated. Prosecutors state the teenage boy blocked the door where the alleged assault happened with a foosball table. Prosecutors also allege the teenage boy filmed himself on his cellphone penetrating the girl from behind, while her torso was exposed, and her head was hanging down. The teenage boy later circulated that video with friends and sent a text saying, “when your first-time having sex was rape.” Several of the friends who received the video told investigator’s the girl’s body was drooping during the assault, and one person stated her head was banging against the wall, according to a report from the Hill. After the defendant left, a group of the defendant’s friends found the girl, vomiting while on the floor. The girl was eventually driven home by a friend’s mother, and she woke up the next morning with ripped clothes and bruises all over her body.
Prosecutors sought to charge the 16-year old boy as an adult, arguing his actions were sophisticated and predatory. In New Jersey, defendants as young as 15 years old can be charged as adults for serious crimes. However, the Judge denied the motion, and issued a ruling that outraged many. The Judge reasoned this boy “comes from a good family who put him into an excellent school where he was doing extremely well”. The Judge stated the boy was “clearly a candidate for not just college but probably for a good college. His scores for college entry were very high”. The Judge also commented that the prosecutors should have educated the sexual assault survivor about the boy’s potential before deciding to press charges against him. If that doesn’t scream victim-shaming, also note the Judge’s comments which made it clear he doubted there was even an assault, stating “the alleged victim here, and I call her the alleged victim here”. The Judge said the boy’s actions were not necessarily rape because “traditional” rape cases involve “two or more generally males involved, either at gunpoint or weapon, clearly manhandling a person”.
Not only is this opinion an extreme bias to people who are well off and privileged, but the remarks are extremely malicious and shameful to survivors of sexual assault. The presence of a supportive family, education or wealth does not excuse you from committing crimes, and it should not excuse you from facing the consequences of committing those crimes. We know that many successful, educated and powerful people commit horrific crimes that alter the lives of their victims forever. Unfortunately, for this young girl, she will have the memory of her assault, the reputation of her body being assaulted on video and distributed to many people, a Judge blaming her alcohol intake and giving her perpetrator a pass because he was an Eagle Scout in his past. The #MeToo and #TimesUp Movement has made great strides for women, prohibiting people to use their power to excuse their crimes. But we, as a society need to take the movement more seriously. We need to teach our children about consent instead of lecturing about what not to wear to an event, so you won’t be “asking for it”.
Does society wish to convict rapists on whether they were an A+ student and Eagle Scout? Unfortunately, this Judge’s opinion reflects the views of many people. It reminds those fighting for justice for sexual assault survivors that they are fighting against those with power to allow these perpetrators to walk free. The fight continues and we must break the stigma against victim-shaming.
“In order to escape accountability for his crimes, the perpetrator does everything in his power to promote forgetting. If secrecy fails, the perpetrator attacks the credibility of his victim. If he cannot silence her absolutely, he tries to make sure no one listens.” – Judith Lewis Herman, Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence – From Domestic Abuse to Political Terror
Kristin Kelley is a fourth-year evening student at Suffolk University Law School. She is currently employed at a healthcare law firm but hopes to pursue her legal career by assisting domestic violence and sexual assault survivors achieve justice.
Sources
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/08/nyregion/judge-james-troiano.html
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog are the views of the author alone and do not represent the views of JHBL or Suffolk University Law School.