rape and sexual assault

Rape Charges Are Dropped in Relation to Victim Who Threatened Suicide on Courthouse Roof

by Cara November 12, 2010

Trigger Warning for discussions of sexual violence, rape apologism, and suicide. Last week, I wrote about a Seattle case in which a 21-year-old woman threatened suicide from the top of a courthouse. The woman was scheduled to testify that day against the man who allegedly raped her for years as a child. The person expected [...]

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Rape Charges Dropped After 14-Year-Old Accuser Commits Suicide

by Cara November 11, 2010

Trigger Warning for discussions of suicide, sexual violence, rape apologism, victim-blaming, and bullying. Near Detroit, rape charges have been dropped against 18-year-old Joseph Tarnopolski, following the suicide of his 14-year-old alleged victim Samantha Kelly. A 34th District Court judge dismissed a rape case against an 18-year-old man who was charged with having sex with a [...]

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Girls’ First Sexual Encounters Are More Likely to Be Unprotected. How About We Ask Why?

by Cara November 9, 2010

Trigger warning for discussions of sexual violence, victim-blaming. This morning I came across a post at a CNN blog about a new study (which has not yet been peer reviewed) on teen sex and sexual health. The aspect of the study making headlines both at CNN and elsewhere is this: “Girls take more chances during [...]

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Victim Threatens Suicide After Plans For Alleged Rapist to Directly Question Her In Court

by Cara November 5, 2010

Trigger Warning for discussions of suicide, childhood sexual violence, domestic violence, and confronting one’s rapist. Yesterday, a truly terrifying even took place at a Seattle courthouse when the accuser in a rape case, who was set to testify that afternoon, made her way to the roof of the building, where she stayed and threatened to [...]

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U.S. Sex Worker Advocates Expose Human Rights Violations Before United Nations

by Cara November 4, 2010

Trigger Warning for discussions of human rights violations against sex workers, as well as sex trafficking and sexual violence. Tomorrow November 5, the United Nations will, for the first time under its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) system, review the human rights record of the United States. That’s a pretty big deal period, especially since the [...]

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Media Employ Tabloid Tactics to Report on Rape Allegations Against Candidate

by Cara October 30, 2010

Trigger Warning for descriptions of sexual violence, rape apologism, and homophobia David King, the Republican candidate for Wisconsin Secretary of State, has been accused of raping an unconscious woman and impregnating her, days before Tuesday’s election. It’s no big surprise that the media has run with such a story in a salacious and gossipy manner, [...]

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Justice Department Report on Sexual Assault in Juvenile Detention Minimizes Violence

by Cara October 29, 2010

Trigger Warning for discussions of sexual violence against youth in juvenile detention. The Department of Justice has just released its Report on Sexual Victimization in Juvenile Correctional Facilities (pdf). While presenting an excellent opportunity to meaningfully engage with the widespread problem of sexual abuse in juvenile detention, as Just Detention notes in its response to [...]

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Report Shows HIV-Positive Women in Chile Forcibly Sterilized, Denied Medical Treatment

by Cara October 22, 2010

Trigger Warning for descriptions of forcible sterilization and denied medical treatment, as well as discussion of other forms of discrimination against HIV-positive people and references to sexual violence. A huge issue for women worldwide is the continued spread of HIV/AIDS. Globally, women make up about half of all people living with HIV or AIDS, and [...]

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Canadian Court Overturns Ruling that Rape Victim Must Remove Niqab to Testify

by Cara October 15, 2010

In Canada in 2007, a woman who has been identified in the press as N.S. accused her uncle and cousin of molesting her as a child. The case was taken to a preliminary hearing, where N.S., a Muslim woman, was ordered to remove her niqab — a face veil that leaves the eyes visible — [...]

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As DA, Colorado Senate Candidate Said Alleged Rape Could Be Seen As “Buyer’s Remorse”

by Cara October 11, 2010

I recently wrote about a case out of Michigan where a prosecutor declined to file charges in a rape case by saying there was no element of force or coercion, despite the victim’s testimony and the corroboration of key parts of her statement by one of the accused parties. While it turned out that the [...]

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