# Two men cleared of rape by recording **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 24, 2016, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930 "2016-11-24T23:56:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2016, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/1 "2016-11-24T23:56:04Z")
Many moons ago I started a hypothetical thread wherein someone was accused of rape and saved by his security system having accidentally recorded the sex. The accidental recording was roundly condemned. Well, truth is stranger than fiction: the Daily Mail reports that [two men have just been vindicated](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3967686/We-ve-branded-gang-rapists-no-evidence-whatsoever-Two-men-cleared-sex-attack-married-British-woman-Dubai-reveal-relief-case-collapses-free-fly-home.html) after being falsely accused of raping a woman because one of the men recorded it all. > [@](#): > > The Dubai Public Prosecutors office said examination of the mobile phone video ‘showed the act happened with the consent of the three parties in question’. It seems to me that now any casual sex is going to be recorded for the safety of men. And, of course, the false accuser is still granted anonymity. ---
**Author:** ![Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Throatwarbler_Mangrove)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/2 "2016-11-25T00:08:06Z")
All three of them are guilty of extra-marital sex and the woman is additionally guilty of making a false accusation, all serious crimes in the UAE. It seems like the police have simply exercised discretion and told all three to just leave the country. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/3 "2016-11-25T00:09:28Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Many moons ago I started a hypothetical thread wherein someone was accused of rape and saved by his security system having accidentally recorded the sex. **The accidental recording was roundly condemned.** … [my bold] Link to support this assertion please? ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/4 "2016-11-25T00:11:54Z")
Honestly, I don’t know what happened. I know what the men say happened. I know what the Dubai authorities say happened. _Dubai_ authorities. This is a country where women are regularly arrested when they are raped. I hope that no one was falsely accused. I’m glad that all are free to go about their business. I’m afraid I can’t take that newspaper account as being proof of anything. If you think that men will be safer from false accusations of rape if they record sexual encounters, then, as long as all parties consent to that, by all means. Record away. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/5 "2016-11-25T00:22:02Z")
> [@Sunny\_Daze](#): > > If you think that men will be safer from false accusations of rape if they record sexual encounters, then, as long as all parties consent to that, by all means. Record away. PC Principal Collects Consent Forms: [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1o_iY99eeA) ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/6 "2016-11-25T00:52:21Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > [my bold] > > Link to support this assertion please? If I could find it, I’d link it. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/7 "2016-11-25T01:18:27Z")
[Found it](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=593029). ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/8 "2016-11-25T03:51:15Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > [Found it](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=593029). So, could you explain the point you’re trying to make here? Consensual recording is presumably uncontroversial, two people can do what they choose. Are you arguing that false accusation of rape is such a widespread problem in society that it should be legal to record your sexual activity without the knowledge or consent of your sexual partner? ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/9 "2016-11-25T04:10:10Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Many moons ago I started a hypothetical thread wherein someone was accused of rape and saved by his security system having accidentally recorded the sex. The accidental recording was roundly condemned. > > Well, truth is stranger than fiction: the Daily Mail reports that [two men have just been vindicated](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3967686/We-ve-branded-gang-rapists-no-evidence-whatsoever-Two-men-cleared-sex-attack-married-British-woman-Dubai-reveal-relief-case-collapses-free-fly-home.html) after being falsely accused of raping a woman because one of the men recorded it all. Your cite goes to the Daily Mail. That covers the “fiction” part, but where’s the “truth” part? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/10 "2016-11-25T04:19:02Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Your cite goes to the Daily Mail. That covers the “fiction” part, but where’s the “truth” part? Are you claiming that this isn’t quality journalism? > [@](#): > > …Harris, who lives with his parents in a £700,000 rural property near Lichfield, Staffordshire, and Butlin a businessman and market trader who also lives with his parents in a £600,000 property in a plush gated community in Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands… In case this story wasn’t holding your attention so far, here’s where their parents are on the property ladder… ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/11 "2016-11-25T04:30:58Z")
In case you missed the subtext, it’s “Heh, heh, heh…” while rubbing hands together. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/12 "2016-11-25T05:02:01Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > Are you claiming that this isn’t quality journalism? On the bright side, we now know two Dopers who find the Daily Mail to be credible sources to share with us. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/13 "2016-11-25T09:47:02Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > In case you missed the subtext, it’s “Heh, heh, heh…” while rubbing hands together. Shame on you; I read the story and remembered the thread I started. > [@Left Hand of Dorkness](#): > > Your cite goes to the Daily Mail. That covers the “fiction” part, but where’s the “truth” part? If you’re saying that the story is false, please provide proof. > [@TokyoBayer](#): > > On the bright side, we now know two Dopers who find the Daily Mail to be credible sources to share with us. The Daily Mail doesn’t have the most sterling of reputations, but I read widely, across the political spectrum. I don’t just read the Guardian. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/14 "2016-11-25T10:05:28Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > I read the story and remembered the thread I started. Ok, I think I’m following your thought process that far. Do you just want us to share in your fond nostalgia, or is there more? ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/15 "2016-11-25T14:15:35Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > The Daily Mail doesn’t have the most sterling of reputations, but I read widely, across the political spectrum. I don’t just read the Guardian. Sigh. It’s not a question of the political spectrum, it’s a question of actual journalism versus sensationalism. You have accepted the story at face value, which strongly suggests you believe what the Daily Mail feeds you. The actual facts don’t seem to be of concern. My WAG is that you didn’t even to a cursory googling of the news to get a more nuanced view in your rush to post what you think is vindication. It’s just an open and shut case because the Daily Mail printed it, right? The woman in question was apparently intoxicated; which would mean in British law that she would not be regarded as being able to provide consent. Dubai does not have that provision for obvious reasons. They don’t care if the woman is completely drunk. In the UK, this would not have been a “false accusation.” See, homework isn’t actually that difficult to do, but it wouldn’t fit your narrative. So yes. By all means, if you want to rape a married woman in Dubai, feel free to record it and you will likely not face any consequences. Happy? ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/16 "2016-11-25T14:35:35Z")
Oh, and here’s a cite discussion intoxicated women not considered capable of providing consent under British law. I’m sure you will appreciate [the source](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3108406/Courts-assume-women-t-consent-sex-drunk-Rape-report-s-controversial-proposal.html). ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/17 "2016-11-25T15:51:31Z")
> [@TokyoBayer](#): > > It’s not a question of the political spectrum, it’s a question of actual journalism versus sensationalism. > > You have accepted the story at face value, which strongly suggests you believe what the Daily Mail feeds you. That’s a very stupid and bigoted statement. The briefest of searches would reveal that the story is also reported in other UK tabloids like the Sun, the Metro, and the Mirror. And the Toronto Star. And Widnes World. I don’t believe or disbelieve a story from any one source; I try to read widely, remember? Look into a mirror and see the real source of your problem. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/18 "2016-11-25T16:00:17Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Look into a mirror and see the real source of your problem. I was about to suggest that we should move this party into the bedroom, but now I’m worried that you have a camera behind that mirror. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/19 "2016-11-25T16:38:03Z")
Me, I was trying to figure out what “Rape by recording” was, and all I could come up with was a truly nasty form of rickrolling. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2016, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930/20 "2016-11-25T16:43:08Z")
If having sex while drunk is rape, I guess I’ve been raped 1000 times by now. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-men-cleared-of-rape-by-recording/772930.md?page=2)