I understand that lawyers have a duty to zealously defend clients, even clients accused of rape. However, one thing that that keeps coming up is the experience of actually being a victim of a sex crime and being essentially subject to misogynist harassment by defense attorneys. Is saying a bikini and a couple drinks meant it was consensual a zealous defense? Is "what was she wearing" a defense? I understand that it's not fair to expect you or any other defense attorney to fix huge systemic issues. I understand that defense attorneys are a vital part of our justice system. I understand that even people accused of the most heinous crimes deserve adequate representation. But I also think we can't ignore the role that defense attorneys have in further victimizing people who have survived sexual abuse.
So, let's talk about this. This is one of the things I feel is the biggest problems with our system as any response to sexual or domestic violence.
As a system, we do not center the experiences of victims. Victims are not a part of any kind of negotiations; furthermore, the incentives of an adversarial system of justice essentially require a defendant to clam up and avoid taking responsibility in order to avoid getting completely slammed. Victims are often cut out of the process entirely except for brief phone calls with prosecutors or victim/witness "advocates" (who seem to do more advocating for the prosecutors to the victims than they do advocating for the victims to the prosecutors, and again, this is structural). And then at trial they are interrogated, put through some bullshit, and finally have the privilege at the end, if they "won," of having their pain displayed for the prosecutor's purposes and trotted out to score an emotional victory or two... as an excuse to inflict state-originated violence on the perpetrator.
I think all this is fucking garbage.
But let's focus on defense attorneys in particular.
The way our system works, the way it poses the mountainous power of the state against the individual defendant and sidelines the victim, requires that, for any pretense of fairness, the defendant have a right to put their accuser to questioning under oath.
And what are the available defenses to something like rape? If the only evidence is her word, the only defense is that her word is wrong. Then it's only that she's mistaken or lying. If sexual contact took place, the only defense is consent.
As a defense attorney, this fucking sucks! I want to be able to defend my client and do it cleanly and ethically. I don't want to be complicit in the revictimization of anyone. (And, for what it's worth, I think bullying an victim, alleged or not, on the stand plays badly and is bad tactics too, in this era, so I only do it when there's a real paper trail of overt lying. And that does happen: courtrooms may only see a vanishingly small percentage of victims but it sees all the balls-to-the-wall liars.)
But this is my only ethical choice in that situation. If my client wants a jury trial, it's my duty to do it, regardless of who they are and what they're accused of. That's the point of a public defender. If "she's lying" is the only available defense, that has to be the defense. I will do it as clean as I can, because of the aforementioned reasons, and honestly I think having an ethical and calm and direct attorney in my position is worth a lot.
How much does that help you, though? Not a whole fucking lot! I bet it actually kind of sucks to hear me say that "actually, we can't help it even when we want to."
Crime is viewed as something an individual does against the order of the state. Not theoretically -- it's actually viewed like that, in a way that gets real-world consequences every day. That's why in many places the prosecutors represent "the people" (allegedly). That's why judges make the decisions. Here's the fucking problem: you're a human person and the crime was committed against you.
If anything, with sexual violence, the way the state is set up and the structures of power it reinforces have probably enabled that sexual violence. It certainly does nothing to prevent it.
This is one of the biggest reasons I think the current system utterly and completely fails victims of sexual and domestic violence. It needs a different system from jump, one that centers protection and healing. This way is wrong, and it boggles me that people can't see that and keep trying to force this retributive system where the victims are just shoved out of the case as much as possible.
I don't know how much this matters, but I hear you. I see you. I'm really fucking sorry that defense attorneys made it worse for you, that's awful. And god knows I've seen defense attorneys who make it their whole practice to attack victims on the stand, sometimes in pretty vile ways. That's bullshit and those guys suck, and you deserved better treatment from the beginning. You also deserved a system that wouldn't put you in that position to begin with.
romaincrisis
prguitarman
snowghoul
theartofmadeline
baratheonpilled
izzy806
titsay
blakekathryn
