Word: raped
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This is exactly why rape shield laws were enacted over 25 years ago—to prevent the disclosure of the survivor’s sexual history and the degrading cross-examination that focuses on the survivor’s behavior—how she acted, what she wore, whom was she with—but Bryant’s powerful team of lawyers managed to find cracks within the shield...
However, at its heart this case is not about Jane Doe’s lifelong sexual history. Being sexually active with several men does not make a single act of rape acceptable in any way or form. This case is also not about whether sexual intercourse took place—Bryant admitted that much in a press conference last year. Rather, this case deals solely with the question of consent—whether or not this act legally constituted a rape. The only question that should be debated in this “she said-he said” case...
Unfortunately, no matter the outcome of the Bryant trial, no matter who is telling the truth, the damage to rape survivors may already be done. Reporting a rape is a complicated act, and many survivors are hesitant to discuss it. The Department of Justice found that many women choose not to report rapes and sexual assaults because of the “belief that the victim was herself responsible, fear of social consequences, and the belief that the police would be ineffective.” The Bryant case has only confirmed these fears are well-founded...
...window surrounding the incident. Getting her to admit to having had sex with another man before her encounter with Bryant would allow the defense to cast doubt on physical evidence that Bryant had forced himself on her. And getting her to admit she had sex right after the alleged rape could cast doubt on her whole story...
...then both sides knew the case was running out like a 24-sec. shot clock. The prosecution had consulted forensic expert Dr. Michael Baden several months ago about the accuser's physical examination, which showed some vaginal bruising, a possible sign of rape. But Baden said the evidence was inconclusive. "You could have these injuries in consensual sex and not have any injuries in nonconsensual sex," he told TIME. When one of Bryant's attorneys, Pamela Mackey, discovered that the prosecution had removed Baden from its witness list, she phoned him. He told her what he had told prosecutors. Mackey...