# It's people like you that make it harder to punish rapists! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 5, 2001, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408 "2001-07-05T22:42:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2001, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/1 "2001-07-05T22:42:45Z")
You stupid fucking bitch! You want attention, okay, fine. So THIS is how you go about it? You LIE and claim you were raped, and now you admit that it was a hoax? YOu stupid shitty cunt! I can’t find a site, right now. But perhaps some Western PA Dopers can help me. A woman claimed she was raped near Schenley High School in the East End. Now, she claims it was all a hoax. She LIED about it. People like that piss me off. Rape is a serious crime. A very serious one. When people make false accusations, they only perpetuate the myth that all women are liars when it comes to rape. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2001, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/2 "2001-07-05T23:45:21Z")
That’s right up there with kids that claim a teacher molested them just to “get even” with him/her. An accusation of rape/molestation is all it takes to wreck a life. People who play games like this are seriously damaging their karma (if such exists). ---
**Author:** ![McMurphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e19adc/32.png) [@McMurphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/McMurphy)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2001, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/3 "2001-07-06T01:57:34Z")
I personally am of the opinion that people who lie like this under these sorts of circumstances should receive a sentence similar to the one the innocent victim would have received if they’d been found guilty. ---
**Author:** ![JeffB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeffb/32/188_2.png) [@JeffB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JeffB)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2001, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/4 "2001-07-06T02:27:02Z")
Here’s a link to the [Pittsburgh Tribune-Review](http://www.pittsburghlive.com/live/news/news_story.html?rkey=145148+sid=955972ef7ec05eafdafc31c725a330d6+cat=news-pittsburgh+template=news1.html) article. What makes it even worse is that police are trying to track down a potential serial rapist in the area, and they get distracted by this shit. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2001, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/5 "2001-07-06T03:14:48Z")
McMurphy, speaking as a victime myself I totally agree with your idea!!! ---
**Author:** ![Erroneous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/71c47a/32.png) [@Erroneous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erroneous)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2001, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/6 "2001-07-06T04:41:19Z")
There was an incident here in Melbourne a year or so ago where two men were chased and beaten (one of them died as a result) by two other men, who’d been told by a woman that she’d just been raped. She later admitted to lying - the men who were bashed were a gay couple walking through the park who ran from the aggressive-looking vigilantes, fearing a gay-bashing. The vigilantes were convicted, but I don’t recall the woman being punished. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2001, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/7 "2001-07-06T06:53:22Z")
Well then, [this](http://www.ipt-forensics.com/journal/volume10/j10_3_6_13.htm) one should chap your hide. > [@](#): > > In March 1985 the victim recanted her testimony. She said she had fabricated the rape to hide a legitimate sexual encounter with her boyfriend. This after the guy had done **six years** hard time as a rapist is prison(men convicted of rape are ‘given a difficult time’ by other inmates in prison). ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2001, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/8 "2001-07-06T16:59:08Z")
“Tawana told the truth!” False charges like these are truly heinous and I can’t help but agree with some form of punishment other than civil. I have a friend who was a life long boy scout. Highlight of his year was three months working summer camps (or whatever the Scouts call summer camp). He made the mistake of yelling at a boy for being terribly unsafe on the archery range and the next day was called into the administrators office. The boy had accused my friend of touching him and though the administrator “didn’t believe the claim” but my friend was asked to leave and not return. (Disclaimer: It is, of course, possible that my friend is lying to me but I have no reason to believe so) ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2001, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/9 "2001-07-06T19:12:27Z")
Yeah, I’ve read about the Dotson case. THAT pisses me off as well. I mean, you know who is going to exploit this. The kinds of ignorant fucks who go around saying that women ask for it…that say that boys will be boys, and that women are just sluts who lie, etc etc. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![lenin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3bc359/32.png) [@lenin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lenin)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/10 "2001-07-07T00:10:34Z")
I remember a few years ago there was a big stir over a rape claim. This being in suburban Massachusetts, everyone was concerned. The girl eventually backed down and retraced it, but people later found it she made it up just to cover up having intercourse with her boyfriend. Pah. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/11 "2001-07-07T02:32:29Z")
This might be one area where the advocates of “theonomy” (Biblical law) have the right idea: > [@](#): > > If a malicious witness takes the stand to accuse a man of a crime, the two men involved in the dispute must stand in the presence of the LORD before the priests and the judges who are in office at the time. The judges must make a thorough investigation, and if the witness proves to be a liar, giving false testimony against his brother, then do to him as he intended to do to his brother. You must purge the evil from among you. The rest of the people will hear of this and be afraid, and never again will such an evil thing be done among you. – [Deuteronomy 19:16-20](http://bible.gospelcom.net/cgi-bin/bible?passage=DEUT+19:16-20&language=english&version=NIV&showfn=on&showxref=on) ---
**Author:** ![Morrison\_s\_Lament](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Morrison\_s\_Lament](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morrison_s_Lament)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/12 "2001-07-07T02:53:00Z")
I couldn’t agree more with the idea of putting these people away for as long a stretch as the falsely accused could have reasonable expected. Why haven’t I ever heard this proposed outside of these boards before? — G. Raven ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/13 "2001-07-07T03:04:19Z")
> [@](#): > > Why haven’t I ever heard this proposed outside of these boards before? I guess you just don’t read enough Gary North. Of course, he tends to favor stoning people to death over prison sentences, and the capital crimes which he would favor putting false witnesses to death for maliciously accusing others of having committed would include worshipping false gods, having abortions, and sodomy, plus he ran around for years telling everyone that the Y2K Bug meant the certain doom of Western Civilization (with the hope of constructing a new death-by-stoning-intensive Godly order on the ruins)… But hey, even a total raving lunatic can be right once. Actually, we should really give credit to the ancient Israelites (who also had a lot of Really Bad Ideas About Law and Order, and for all I know may have ripped off the idea from Hammurabi or someone). ---
**Author:** ![Drastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Drastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drastic)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/14 "2001-07-07T03:17:11Z")
> [@](#): > > But hey, even a total raving lunatic can be right once. Just so. Even though a fool may say it’s raining, that doesn’t mean that if you go outside with an umbrella that you won’t get wet. False accusations of criminal activity should definitely face criminal penalties. ---
**Author:** ![Totoro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@Totoro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Totoro)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/15 "2001-07-07T13:52:40Z")
I totally agree w/ **Drastic** , about false accusations should be charged. There was the man convicted of rape that **Spooje** mentioned. Six years of his life in jail, getting railed by the bigger, hairier guy in the cell two over from his. The woman that did that should go to jail for that, and I think it’s amazing she doesn’t. I’d like to slap her too, but I want to slap a lot of people. ---
**Author:** ![eirroc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f1d935/32.png) [@eirroc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eirroc)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/16 "2001-07-07T15:48:02Z")
I totally agree with that **McMurphy**. I have such contempt and disgust for woman that do that, don’t they realise the damage they are doing to legitimate claims? :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/17 "2001-07-07T15:54:58Z")
I don’t know if this will make you feel better or worse, but some women who “take back” accusations of rape really were raped, but were pressured by the police, friends, or family to withdraw their accusation. This is not to say that there aren’t some real sickos who just make things up, but it ain’t always so. ---
**Author:** ![Zenster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/cdc98d/32.png) [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/18 "2001-07-07T20:11:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by McMurphy \* > **I personally am of the opinion that people who lie like this under these sorts of circumstances should receive a sentence similar to the one the innocent victim would have received if they’d been found guilty.** I like this idea a lot. It would cut down on nitwits like Tawana Brawley and the Al Sharptons who glorify such unadulterated manure. Didn’t the woman in the Gary Dotson case go on to eventually marry him? This is what I recall hearing. Talk about weird! ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/19 "2001-07-07T20:15:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Zenster \* > > Didn’t the woman in the Gary Dotson case go on to eventually marry him? This is what I recall hearing. Talk about weird! I don’t think so! Yikes! I hope that’s not true. Kathy Webb admitted to making the story up and then Dotson was freed. What really freaked me about the case was how Dotson harbored no ill will towards her. It almost made you think that someone had convinced Kathy to recant her story. Dotson, who spent six years in prison for something he didn’t do, barely batted an eyelash IIRC. Steve Dahl, a DJ here in chicago, wrote a song about the case called 11x3, and it’s not only funny, but informative. jarbaby ---
**Author:** ![Stella\_Fantasia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/74df32/32.png) [@Stella\_Fantasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stella_Fantasia)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2001, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408/20 "2001-07-07T20:23:16Z")
Man, I was just about to start a thread about this… GOD, does this piss me off!!! One night I met this guy, & he raped me. Now, because I’d known him for 45 minutes before he did that to me, I am a victim of “date rape”. But because of stupid cunts like that one, “date rape” has come to mean “I had sex when I was drunk & felt bad about it the next morning”. So I can’t ever talk about what happened to me for fear that people will think I’m like that bitch. It would be too mean to say that I hope all the moronic twats who cry “date rape” after they lose their judgment post-margarita should get raped for real, & have to spend the rest of lives with 1 1/2 nipples like I do, but it would be nice if they understood what rape REALLY was…& for everybody else, it hurts just as bad if you know his name. The fact that he didn’t grab me in a darkened alley didn’t make me bleed any less… [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-people-like-you-that-make-it-harder-to-punish-rapists/71408.md?page=2)