Society’s role in criminalizing statutory rape cases play a big part on how people look at the different cases. In society everyone expects for a younger girl to be with an older guy, so people may not see a priority in statutory rape laws. “Considering that it is customary for women to date and marry slightly older men” (M.W., 1998). Since it is not abnormal for younger girls and older guys to be together most people do not see an age gap of about three years that big of a deal. But if these people do not report a case of statutory rape then they are technically endangering a minor. Males in society do not see male statutory rape victims as victims. These men look at it as a pat on the back to the young boys who were sexually active with adult women. The men also make comments saying that they wish they could have been in that position when they were young. Some people in today’s society do not understand the priority of really enforcing statutory rape cases unless there is a huge age difference or the victim was a young girl instead of a boy. The media has a big part in which cases will be recognized. The media tends to show female victims and adult male offenders more than they would male victims and adult female offenders. Female offenders should be broadcasted just as much as the men and should not get privileges just because they are women.
Statutory rape laws and child marriage laws greatly clash. According to Cocca, “of all brides in 1970, 13% were under 18; in 1980, 8.2%, and in 1990 3.7%. Of all grooms 1970 2.1 were under 18; in 1980 1.3% and in 1990 0.6” (Cocca, 2004). Yes over time the percentage of adults and minors getting married has dwindled, but it was not right to go along with in the first place. In some states...
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...sibility of being parents when they cannot even legally say yes to sex.
Statutory rape laws are far from perfect. Statutory rape laws are discriminating towards boys and biased towards girls. No law should be gender specific especially one that consists of people who are endangering minors. These laws have discriminated boys for over 150 years. The law should be fair to both genders and give boys the voice the need in the cases. Over the years statutory rape cases have gone underreported, mainly because people do not witness the cases themselves. Most of the lost cases involve minor males and older females. Even though some cases have been reported they do not get as much publicity as the cases dealing with young girls and adult men. Boys should get the same amount of protection under the statutory rape laws as girls do; the young men are victims just as girls are.
As Estrich demonstrates, the law on rape has major flaws. The law exposes traditions and attitudes that surround women and sex. It condones the idea that sex contains male aggression and female passivity. The law uses three different criteria to label an act of sex as rape: mens rea, force, and consent. Estrich feels that these features demonstrate sexist attitudes within the law. Our legal system abandon’s mens rea which is Latin for “guilty state of the mind.” It is the perpetrator’s ability to understand force and non-consent. A woman must demonstrate resistance. The man can escape by stating he did not realize the woman was not consenting. So, the court turns to the woman to see if she provided proper evidence that she did not consent to the sex.
Sexual assault and rape on college campuses is a serious public issue. Before applying to these accredited institutions most students do not look up the school 's past records of sexual assault and rape on their campus.College campuses have failed to keep students safe the system they use has failed to protect and obtain justice for those that have been victims of sexual assault. Society plays a huge part in how young adults view sexual assault. From young age girls are told “if he’s bothering you it 's because he likes you”, and boys aren 't held accountable for their actions because “boys will be boys”. At what time does it stop being a game. At what age is it not acceptable for boys to mistreat girls, when is the line drawn and, what is the punishment for when this line is crossed.
Sexual assault is defined as any type of sexual contact or behavior that occurs without the explicit consent of the recipient. Falling under the definition of sexual assault are sexual activities as forced sexual intercourse, forcible sodomy, child molestation, incest, fondling, and In the United States 80% of sexual assault victims are under the age of 30. Of that 80%, 44% are under the age of 18 (RAINN, 2016). That leaves 36% of victims between the ages of 18 and 30. These percentages become even more alarming when that 80% is of about 293,000 victims of secual assualt each year (RAINN, 2016). It is estimated that 1 in every 6 women in the US has been or will be victims of sexual assault in their lifetime. The risks of sexual assault increase on college campuses. Women ages 18-24 who are enrolled in college are 3 times more likely than women in general to suffer from sexual violence (RAINN, 2016). One would think that with all these women being sexually assaulted, one would hear more about it, or perhaps the police stations would constantly be busy. This is not the case. Sexual assault is one of the most unreported crimes, with 68% still being left unreported (RAINN, 2016). This could be because of every 100 rapists, only 2 will spend a day in jail. Of the 32 out of 100 that would be reported, only 7 are referred to an arrest (RAINN, 2016). Why would men or women want to report sexual assault when the system that is supposed to protect them fails so often, and why does this system continue to fail?
Rape until 2012 was defined as “The carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.” It was severely lacking was only updated by the Federal Bureau of Instigation in 2012. It left out an entire section of rape that can be committed which is man being the rape victim. This lead to misclassification of rape of males for years. So even the statistics used till 2014 were underwhelming and inaccurate when it was related to male rape or sexual assault. Rape in the United States is now defined by the Department of Justice as “Penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.” Male Rape or men being the sexual assault victims are rarely ever the subject of a dialogue when Sexual Assault is the topic being discussed because rape is generally seen as a heterosexual highly sexed male attack on vulnerable, attractively dressed female victim. Most rapists have alternative outlets for sexual gratification, many take little notice of their victim 's physical attributes, and some may experience sexual dysfunction during the assault.
90 percent of the victims of sexual assault are women and 10 percent are men, and nearly 99 percent of offenders in single-victim assaults are men (Bureau of Justice Statistics 2010). According to https://www.justice.gov/ovw/sexual-assault, Sexual assault is any type of sexual contact or behavior that occurs without the explicit consent of the recipient. Falling under the definition of sexual assault are sexual activities as forced sexual intercourse, forcible sodomy, child molestation, incest, fondling, and attempted rape. () Sexual Assault can happen to anyone, not just women it can happen to men and kids as well. Sexual Assault these days are a big trouble and it is not being addressed in good order, and it is
From a very young age children have been taught by their parents that girls do one thing while guys do another. The reason for this is because our parents have been taught by their parents who were taught by their parents and so on and so fourth. When talking to most people about gender roles, they will start to see a pattern in the way they responses they receive, which will leave them with a good idea about how our society has formed the ideas and roles of sexes. Rape culture in modern day society is real and the biggest factors that contribute to it are we have been taught that boys need to grow up tough, girls need to be careful of some men, and that women need to be able to take care of a man and his needs. This way is poisonous to the
The year was 2007 and the, at the time, fourteen year old Cherice Moralez was under more pressure than the typical teenage girl. Behind closed doors, one of Moralez’s teachers, forty-eight year old Stacey Rambold, was repetitively raping her. Before her confession, Cherice was battling her reluctance to tell authorities about what was happening, fearful of the judgment she might endure from her peers. It took until October 31 of 2008 for Rambold to be arrested. Though many would think Cherice’s troubles would be over and potential victims would be saved, this case proved to be more than controversial. After pleading guilty to only one of three charges of sexual intercourse without consent, Rambold was given the opportunity to have all charges dropped if he attended sex offender treatment. Not only this but Cherice was being shunned by other students at her school. Even though the rape was not “forcible, beat-up rape,” as Judge Baugh phrased it as he defended his undersized ruling on the case, having sex with a child who cannot consent is considered rape (Insert Daily Mail Citation). Under all of these circumstances, why does the government let this happen? Why do some rapists receive minimal punishment as their victims attempt to piece their lives back together while being outcasted from society? Today, rape and sexual assaults are becoming an even bigger issue than ever before. With a 25% increase of reported assaults as of 2008 (Insert HWR Citation), it is estimated that one in four women will be raped at one point in her lifetime (Insert TheHathorLegacy Citation). What is to blame for this alarming epidemic? The United States over its many years seemed to have developed a society based around the rationalization of conventio...
Lynch, Michael W. “Enforcing ‘Statutory Rape ‘?.” Public Interest 132 (1998): 3. Points of View
The acceptance that the court system often treats female offenders differently than male offenders is an accurate statement; however, it comes with many caveats. Generally, the public views women as nurturers, motherly and incapable of harming a child. Research indicates that female sex offenders capable of committing such acts have serious psychiatric and psychological problems. In comparison, research indicates male sex offenders are more callous, more antisocial, and promiscuous, involved in the criminal justice system, and have more victims (Miccio-Fenseca, 2012, slide 7). The consensus is that men commit their acts for sexual pleasure while women commit their acts due to psychiatric and psychological problems. Law enforcement, juries, and judges tend to empathize more when there are additional mitigating factors such as emotional or psychological problems. Due to these mitigating factors, it appears treatment of female sex offenders is more lenient than male if their crimes are similar in nature. Research by Miccio-Fenseca (2012) indicates that in comparison to their male counterparts, “female sex offenders rarely use force or violence far less than often…rarely use threats of violence to silence victims…rarely use threats o...
According to rain.org 44 percent of rape victims are under the age of 18 and 80 percent are under the age of 30 years old. Every 2 minutes an American is a victim of rape and about 240,000 of them are reported each year. Only 60 percent of assaults are not reported to the police renders that 97 percent of the perpetrators never spend a day in jail. The less the people report the crime the less they are likely to catch the perpetrator. Sadly 23 of the victims know the person whole is assaulting them. Almost 40 percent of the rapist know their victim. This is a very uns...
It is not a topic that is brought up often, especially at schools or at gatherings, yet it is crucial that everyone be educated, or at least informed on a topic that affects women every day. “Given that sexual violence continues to occur at high rates in the United States, it is vital that we understand attitudes and cultural norms that serve to minimize or foster tolerance of sexual violence” (Aosved, 481). Growing rates of sexual violence goes to prove that it is not taken seriously by many, especially when myths excuse the actions of the perpetrator and instead guilt victims into thinking they are responsible for the horrible act. Burt (1980), in her article titled, “Cultural myths and support for rape” attempts to make sense of the importance of stereotypes and myths, defined as prejudicial, stereotypes, or false beliefs about rape, rape victims and rapists- in creating a climate hostile to rape victims (Burt, 217). Examples of rape myths are such sayings as “only bad girls get raped”; “women ask for it”; “women cry rape” (Burt, 217). This only goes to prove that rape myths against women always blame and make it seem like it is the women’s fault she was raped and that she deserved it for “acting” a certain way. McMahon (2007), in her article titled, “Understanding community-specific rape myths” explains how Lonsway and Fitzgerald (1994) later described rape myths as “attitudes and beliefs that are generally
What do you think and feel when you hear the word rape? Do you feel uncomfortable? Maybe even angry? Your certain feelings and emotions towards this word is a result of rape culture. Rape culture, essentially, is how a society as a whole sees and reacts towards rape or instances of rape. In 2013 rape was defined by the FBI as, “Penetration… of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.” (Division’s Crime Statistics Management Unit 1). The definition was finally changed after the old definition deemed inappropriate by today’s standards, which beforehand, stated that physical force needed to be used for rape to be considered rape. This is good news for men and women who have been fighting for the definition to be changed, but unfortunately this does not mean that state laws are being changed the same way. Even though the FBI may acknowledge the older inappropriate definition, most states do not. Sexual assault is a commonly unreported crime, where only an average of 36% of sexual abuse is actually reported to the authorities (Planty 7). Some forms of rape can include physical harm, threats, and even death of the victim, and most victims do not want to tell others for fear of criticism, self-blame, or even the fear that their attackers will carry out on their threats. In many cases, victims do have a reason to be afraid. When someone is brave enough to come forward and say they were sexually assaulted, they are putting themselves in the position of being in not only a long legal process, but also having their motives questioned and misunderstood, which is the last thing they want after their experience. The legal system in the United States...
In the century that we are living in, when people hear the term statutory rape it only means one thing, one grown man and a teenage girl having sexual relations. But what if I tell you that statutory rape has way more complications then that. Would you believe me? What if I tell you that the law of statutory rape should be reviewed and revise because it is confusing, bias and unfair. Would you be on my side? When statutory rape is brought up people never thinks about what happened to the two teens that just got caught having intercourse. Or what happen to that female teacher that just got caught doing the hanky-panky with that teenage boy. These questions never been thought of after the incident had occurred. But I guaranteed that if it was a thirty year old man with a girl that’s under the age of 18 everybody in states, out of states, different continents and maybe even different planets would have known and made sure that something would have happened to that man.
Sexual assault needs to be taken seriously and shouldn’t be tossed aside or placed under the rug. When it comes to sexual assault a stand needs to be made. People tend to think the way girls dress and act they are asking for sexual assault and well that is just beyond wrong! There is something called a slut walk and everyone should participate in it. A slut walk is, “A kind of protest march against rape culture, generally led by young women who dress in revealing clothing” (Slutwalk Dictionary Definition). Goodwin college is one of the colleges in Connecticut to hold a slut walk and have girls take a stand and show people that no one asks for a sexual assault to happen so why it is happen and it needs to be stopped and addressed. Take a chance because no one ever knows who can be attacked, it can be someone you know, yourself, your daughter, anyone close to you or just a helpless person. No matter who it is it is still something very scary and something that shouldn’t be
Rape due to intoxication is currently at the forefront of all issues facing college campuses across the United States. Because of the negative effects alcohol has on the human brain, it often plays a major role in the sexual assault of college women. In fact, a study conducted by Dr. Antonia Abbey found that “55% of the sexual assaults reported by college women involved alcohol consumption” (Abbey, 119). In ninety-seven percent of these assaults, both the victim and perpetrator were reported to be intoxicated. In addition, college women are significantly more likely to experience sexual assault than college men, whereas, college men are much more likely to be the perpetrators than the victims of assault. It is a harsh fact that most women will