When a Student Confides a Rape, Should a Professor Have to Report It?

[branford]

124. Yes, you were an accuser until an adjudication,

and the accused was an alleged rapist or defendant. I'm sorry you suffered, but it in no way changes the fact the accused was innocent until proven guilty, and your accusation did not change the nature of western jurisprudence and the Constitutional due process requirements.

If you were the victim of a sexual assault, you were right to go to the local district attorney. However, under the canons of ethics under which all prosecutors operate, if he or she did not have a good faith belief that there was sufficient evidence to prove that you were assaulted by the defendant beyond any reasonable doubt, they were ethically bound to not prosecute. No one has the "right" to have their claims heard by a criminal jury, and that is why the state is the prosecutor in such matters. These rules apply to all crimes, accusers and defendants, not just sexual assault. Unfortunately, many sexual assault cases are very difficult to prove. Nevertheless, legal rules and protections are fairly immutable. You could have also sued the perpetrator in civil court, but you would still bear the burden of proof and require some evidence (although less than in a criminal trial).

Accusing me of inadequate sympathy for you is ridiculous. My sympathies lie with Constitution. No one should be tarred a violent felon without due process of law and other related protections, and sympathy is not a substitute for evidence.

I find it ironic and disturbing that most liberals strongly defend all the protections provided to criminal defendants, including the often accused and harassed minority youth (I'm an attorney and active on this issue), yet somehow believe there is a rape exception to the Constitution. There is not.

I anticipate that schools who follow the veritable "presumed guilty / no defense" rules will continue to find themselves on the losing end of expensive and embarrassing lawsuits, and the accusers may also find themselves as defendants in court. Is is unconscionable that enlightened people would try to skew the justice system in order to fix the "correct" result.