It’s probably unfair to characterize the grimacing bark I emitted upon reading as “laughter,” but it was out loud.
Thanks for singling me out.
I don’t think that is really the case, having worked sex crimes.
Most real assaults are reported fairly quickly. There is usually DNA from semen, unless the subject used a condom, and even then there is usually DNA from other sources - things he touched when entering the home, etc. Transfer from the crime scene onto his body, shoes, and clothing from the victim’s residence, blood, even pet hairs can be identified, as can tissue samples taken from the victims nails or a weapon she used to try to defend herself. If there is a pre-existing relationship, as in acquaintance rape, there may be communications and contacts that can be located and identified. A timeline will be created for the activities if the subject and victim, often going weeks back, and information is plugged into that timeline that can make seemingly unrelated data points relevant.
There is also evidence corroborating that he was at the crime scene at the time and place - cell phone tracking, ATM and surveillance videos, neighborhood canvasses, witness statements that put him at the scene. There is also evidence that can disprove that the subject was at a place he was claiming as an alibi. If he claims he couldn’t have done it because he was at home, investigators can look at the surveillance cameras near the choke points to his home or in his apartment complex and see if his car can be seen leaving. There is a whole lot more that can be done to prove or disprove his alibi, just as with any other violent crime.
The subject’s past criminal history will also be examined, to see if there are prior assaults or similar associated behaviors, such as burglary or physical assault.
Every investigator I have known considers rapists, including child molesters as among the absolute lowest form of criminal. I can assure you that the men and women who work sex crime cases devote a great deal of effort to identifying and convicting a rapist. They need to be removed from the body politic swiftly.
Like the dog that didn’t bark at midnight, if there is a false claim of sexual assault, investigators will be alerted by the fact that the kind of things I describe above aren’t found - witnesses will be identified that do not corroborate the story, there will be an excessive period of reporting time, there are gaps in the victim’s timeline that can’t be explained, written statements and narratives contain too many problems that can’t be overlooked. Investigators become very acquainted with what real claims look like, so a hoax story will have elements that jump out at them. None of these factors is always dispositive, but it means the narrative should be examined more closely, and not treating the victim with kid gloves simply because “her story sounds credible.”
The recent hoax rape stories - the Duke Lacrosse students, the Rolling Stones story, etc., plus hundreds more that happen around the country every day - would not be successfully solved if there were not investigators and defendant’s attorneys taking a close look at them.
Generally, sexual assault and every other crime gets immediate law enforcement attention if it is reported by even one person - armed robbery, mortgage loan fraud, theft from a shipment, fraud, burglary, etc. These are usually reported as soon as they occur, or as soon as they are discovered. But not one of them can result in a conviction based solely on the word of 1 victim. That’s not the way our system of law operates. To even obtain a search warrant or an arrest warrant, the standard is pretty high, and a magistrate will usually want to see much more than a single victim’s statement to issue one. Not always, but usually.
Sorry, I stopped reading after your first assertion. If you had said, "Most real assaults that we know about are reported fairly quickly, I might have carried on.
You have absolutely no idea how many people don’t report at all. They just go home, nurse their physical wounds and hope for the best with respect to the emotional ones.
You could look it up, though. Most statistics indicate that fewer than a third of victims even report the crime.
With his new message of “I will do or say anything to get this job” I am hopeful that enough people see how craven and weak he is and don’t give him the job; he doesn’t deserve it.
I saw this WaPo headline and honestly thought the last word was gonna be “confirmed.”
This is such a mess.
It’s a done deal now. What am I saying? It was a done deal from the beginning.
So … kegger at Justice Brewski’s tomorrow to celebrate?
::sigh::
Man, can I pick 'em, or what? I am on fire!
En fuego!
Most physical assaults take place without witnesses either. If someone threatens you with physical harm in order for you to give them your money, how do you prove that you were not just giving out the money consensually?
It could come down to the fact that McConnell knows that polls don’t matter, because votes don’t matter. The will of the American people doesn’t matter. They will find a way to stay in office and in power, no matter what political consequences they may face for their actions.
You don’t get labeled the gravedigger of democracy for nothing.
You can’t and you don’t. If it indeed happened, that’s very unfortunate but you can’t do much about it because you don’t have the evidence.
It is the proverbial he-said, she-said.
Added: what is the big deal here? If it happened, just suck it up deal with it. Quit your crying and move on.
So, you are saying that if someone mugs you at gunpoint, you won’t report the crime, just think to yourself “What is the big deal here? Just suck it up and deal with it?”
Of course I will report it. But I’d realize there’s no corroborating evidence, and I’d suck it up and deal with it.
But in Ford’s situation, with no evidence and not having reported it initially, every person who believes her to the point that it should disqualify Kavanaugh is misguided and on a witch hunt.
Ed Whelen really took one for the team by providing the ridiculous “she got attacked, but it wasn’t him” defense that the GOP is all pretending to believe.
The Supreme Court is illegitimate.
Fuck their rulings.
This thread has also been answered.
Closing it.
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