NYC Cop Rape Case Sees Its Victim-Blaming Totally Unravel
Lest we forget, the terrible New York City alleged cop rape case is still horrifically parading through the courtroom. To my mind it hasn't been going so well for the defense but I'm also willing to keep an open mind, I guess, sort of. Updates from the last few days:
• So, previously, when the defense claimed that the victim told people she wasn't sure she'd been raped? Turns out she told plenty of people, including her neighbor and her boss, that she'd been raped. And that she was sure. So, you know, there's that.
• A "few seconds" of surveillance tape show the alleged victim going to her apartment building with the police and she is apparently mobile and able to walk! Therefore she couldn't possibly have been raped, because, obviously if you can walk, you can't be raped. I think that's in the law books somewhere, right? (Also it should be noted that she had just thrown up at least twice.)
• The prosecution is saying that the cops made a fake 911 call to give them an excuse to return to the woman's building for the second of four times that night, claiming that there was a homeless person in the hallway (and that they were from Canada). "He's right in the front doooaahh," says the "Canadian" on the 911 recording.
If the defense brings up the manner in which the young lady was dressed I'm going to start vomiting blood.
Be careful on the internet today.
I just finished sitting on a jury for a three week long rape trial in Manhattan. The defense tried all sorts of victim-blaming and when we were in the jury room, it was so awesome to hear fellow jurors unanimously condemn the defense for trying to discredit the victim by showing us sexy pictures she posted on facebook and the like.
I'm not sure if people will be swayed because the defendants were cops but I have a great deal of faith in the Manhattan jury pool.
(A civic duty reminder – don't skip out on jury duty! The system needs thoughtful, intelligent people like you on juries.)
@Tuna Surprise xoxo. This is very nice to hear. I've never been picked (in NY), but end up burning with hatred listening to my fellow NYCers debase themselves in their desperate flailings to get excused. ("I caaaan't be on a juuuuuury!!! I'm oooooonly 24 yeeears ooooooold!")
@Tuna Surprise Can't speak for Manhattan, but I served on a Grand Jury in Brooklyn for three weeks, and the NYPD wasn't cut any slack at all by my fellow jurors, all of whom had at some point witnessed first-hand pre-meditated acts of cop sleazitude.
Watching this story get buried while the "murdered young blonde" story owns all the front pages makes my soul hurt. Surely this story has more worrying implications for the rest of us than that other one?
But also, this story is sickening enough without its meta attributes.
Aren't we ignoring the possibility that the homeless guy did it? (P.S. That Canadian tourist helpfully told the dispatcher the not-imaginary homeless guy was "male white.")
Did anyone else notice that when the dispatcher asks the gentlemen caller for a name, he says, "John Edwards"? What a goddamn shame.