I would make the argument among their groups that have been discussed that women would receive the most and least unequal treatment by law enforcement. In the earlier years of law enforcement sex crimes failed to get the attention they garnered, the investigations many time were shabby and many times officers felt like the victim got what they deserved by dress, action or history. It is now know that each victim is different and everyone will have a different way that they will deal or respond to this type of crime. This is why most departments have specialized sex crime units that deal specifically with this type of crime. They are specifically trained to deal not only with the crime scene portion, the victim’s body as a crime scene but the victim themselves and the emotional side. As a chief and or lead detective I would more than likely have this type training or know who to call that has had it to respond to the scene. The victim will go through many stages during a rape, which could last days to several weeks. Rape shield laws were passed in the state to protect the victims of rape from the emotional distress that can occur when being questioned about their prior sexual history on the witness stand. It is this type of legal maneuvering by defense council that creates fear among victims. The fear is being humiliated in front of their peers and sometimes these cases can take a very high profile turn and be broadcast live on TV. We have to look no further than
When the criminal justice system was established, the main objective was to create neutrality and fairness between the sexes. Even though people might believe that there is no such thing as ‘stereotyping’ in the criminal justice system, it is quite obvious that women are constantly being look down upon because of their sex. In general, women tend to be treated like fragile objects that could break at any moment; the truth is that women can be strong and courageous just like men. Society stereotypes women and the criminal justice system is no different.
Researchers have come up with various explanations trying to explain the sexual abuse cases in the globe. Some of these explanations form a basis on psychological perspectives, biological perspectives, and criminal perspectives. Despite these differences, rape cases are considered a violation of an individual right and the traumatizing effects are reported to be similar. The paper will focus mainly on the criminological approach to rape cases (Grooth & Jean, 1979). Various criminologists’ literature will be reviewed in association to rape as an offense against the law.
There are two sides to a rape, the rapist and the victim. The victim is most of the time a woman but men are raped as well. It is a common myth that there is a type of woman that is more likely to be raped. This is indeed a myth, most of the time rape is a crime of opportunity, the victim is not chosen because of her looks or behavior, but because she is there (Benedict 2). The average rape victim is 18-39 years old and female, the average rapist is 25 years old and male. The effect of rape on a woman is an enormous one. The woman will come away from a rape with both physical and psychological damage. Eventually the physical wounds will heal, the psychological wounds will take quite some time before or if they ever heal (Grady 4). A sexual assault robs the woman of a sense of control; a feeling of loss of freedom is common among rape victims. To put her life in order she must regain this sense of control. Almost all rape victims suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder (Benedict 2). The first symptom is the reliving or re-experiencing of the
There is a significant health issue facing the public as well as law enforcement every day, suicide. The numbers surrounding suicide are shocking effects people of all backgrounds. In the year 2010 more than 38,000 adults committed suicide. Then in 2011 around 1 million adults admitted to attempting suicide, while 8 million had serious suicidal thoughts. Law Enforcement officers are at an even higher risk then most due to experiencing such a large number of risk factors. These factors include but are not limited to poor physical health, access to fire arms, domestic abuse, substance abuse, exposure to violence and suicide; depression, anxiety and other mental diseases. These factors lead to an above average number of officer suicides every
2). Within the past three decades, there has some “discussion about the pros and cons of adding women in large numbers to the rank and file of to the USA police system” (Mastrofski, 2007, p. 4). According to Zhao (et al, 2006), we have a rising number of female officers on the force compared to past decades, which suggest a growing consensus that adding women to law enforcement is a good idea.
Rule 412 which is the state of Tennessee’s version of the rape shield law, is designed to protect the victims of rapes and sexual assaults. The protection offered by laws of this nature was to prevent the victims of these heinous assaults from being re-traumatized on the witness stand during cross examination from the alleged perpetrators (Brody & Acker, 2010). Although I am an avid supporter of the right to a fair trial, I feel compelled to be the voice for those who are often subjected to constant criticism from fellow peers, courts, news and now social media. Rule 412, although sound in premise behind its development, lacks concession with the changing times. There are far too many loopholes in our own rape shield law which begs the question if other state’s rape shield laws truly offer the protection that they were designed to employ. Capers (2013, p. 827) reports that the ongoing issue with rape victims today is the fear of having their past history put on trial and not the event that took place. It was because of this, that many rapes go unreported. In the early 70’s, legislatures and courts began to rethink allowing an alleged victim’s past sexual history admissible in court. This prompted questions as to whether that prior information was actually useful in a current case. The second question that arose was to whether the courts were actually trying the victim during the trial rather than the alleged perpetrator. This is how rape shield laws came about. Then,
The United States criminal justice system, an outwardly fair organization of integrity and justice, is a perfect example of a seemingly equal situation, which turns out to be anything but for women. The policies imposed in the criminal justice system affect men and women in extremely dissimilar manners. I plan to examine how gender intersects with the understanding of crime and the criminal justice system. Gender plays a significant role in understanding who commits what types of crimes, why they do so, who is most often victimized, and how the criminal justice system responds to these victims and offenders. In order to understand the current state of women and the way in which gender relates to crime and criminal justice, it is first
Many times when a person is raped they are too traumatized to actually remember the full details or only remember certain characteristics, or facial features of the person who hurt them. So law enforcement makes an arrest based on the victims memory. Then after convicted it is found out that the wrong person was
Thesis: Videotaping of Law enforcement should be allowed by civilians since it is a constitutional right of the people. Police can be videotaped while working in the public as long as specific conditions are met. Implementing new video technology both on the officer directly and in law enforcement departments, will help to reduce tax payer money for wrongful prosecution and ensure civilian and law enforcements safety. Videotaping is, indeed, specified and protected by the first amendment to our constitution.
T. H. is a 23 years old female residing in Albuquerque, New Mexico, presenting with concern that she is pregnant because her period is two weeks late. Although she is currently single and not sexually active, T. H. disclosed that she was sexually assaulted approximately 1 month ago while attending a retreat in Gallup, New Mexico with her church group. The patient stated that she consumed 2 beers with friends from her church group and lost consciousness for the remainder. She awoke with pelvic pain the next morning and was unable to recall the events of the prior evening. To date, T.H. is still unable to remember what transpired while she was unconscious. The patient has not sought help for the rape subsequent to today’s visit. Presence of additional physical trauma, as well as the persistence and treatment of her pelvic pain in the weeks following the assault were not obtained.
The criminal justice system is a male dominated occupation. For many years women have tried to break down the barrier and some have succeeded. But unlike men, women have to fight to be respected and to be heard. There has always been a gender bias. Women have decided to work outside the home and “move in” on careers that were specified as male professions. Females unfortunately have to
Gender inequality still plays a huge role in today’s society. Women comprise only a small percentage of the local law enforcement agencies across the nation. Women have been a part of law enforcement since the 20th century but have only been noticed within the last 40 years. Back in the 1970’s women rarely held positions in law enforcement and if they did it was mainly clerical/desk positions. Even though the amount of women in law enforcement today has increased, women still only make up roughly around 13 percent of the law enforcement work force (Public). Women can make such an impact in the Law Enforcement field if given a fair chance but they may face many problems when doing so. Some say that women don’t belong, while others suggest
I choose this topic because sexual assault is one of the most offensive crimes committed in our society. Not only is it a threat to the community, but it has a physically and psychologically effect on the victim in many ways. For the last couple of decades, sexual assault, rape, and child molestation has become the focal point of public concerns today. According to a 1993 National Crime Victimization Survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice, about 500,000 rapes or sexual assaults occur each year (Statistics, March 2010). The Department of Justice states that, “rape crimes have risen nearly three times as fast as the total crime rate”, although other studies have shown statistics that are in
Americans think that they have come a long way since a gap of equality between men and women existed. Because of this progress, many people make the assumption that there is no inequality left in the United States and women have the same opportunities as men. Yes, it is true that the American society has come from one of inequality to that one that is more equal. Yes Americans have come a long way, but unfortunately women are still not equal to their male counterparts. This inequality towards women is evident within several different aspects in life, ranging from politics, gender roles, marriage, society as a whole and, especially, women in the Police Force. The history of women in the criminal justice system as police officers has been
All feminist theorists share a common focus on gender inequality; however feminism can be described as a set of perspectives rather than a single viewpoint (Strider, N.d.). Therefore, challenging gender biasness in the criminal justice system from the feminist perspective can take many forms given the fact that there a lot of sources of gender inequality in the system. For example, the early theories of criminal behavior largely ignored gender all together and as a result the field has become largely male dominated and males have also been shown to commit more crimes than women on average.