The student who says she was raped at Mercer University has appealed the dismissal of her case to the Georgia Supreme Court. The trial court’s ruling was unacceptable on several scores and could have a negative effect on other civil lawsuits alleging sexual assault, and so I really hope the Georgia Supreme Court agrees to hear her case. For more information on this case, see here and here, but in brief the issues at stake include whether laws that prohibit a victim from being questioned about her prior sexual history apply to civil cases, whether the fact that the woman was not a virgin means the court does not have to treat her case as having the same seriousness as it would if she had been a virgin, whether her total lack of memory of the relevant parts of the evening means the accused’s story is the reliable one, and whether the accuser should have to pay all of the accused’s court costs. Talk about a ruling to discourage anyone from reporting their rape and pursuing justice!
It’s pretty outrageous that the Appeals Court was not even willing to hear her appeal. Here’s hoping for some better judgment on the part of the Georgia Supreme Court.
What I don’t understand is why we’re so quick to believe her story over his? I mean, come on, we live in the 21st century. I highly doubt the courts dismissed her claims due to his “powerful” family! What were the details of this case? Also, you claim in your earlier posts that you contacted the plaintiff’s firm, but did you ever contact the defendant’s firm? If we want to be treated fairly as woman, then we need to view this case, and the defendant, in a fair light. Just because his family has money doesn’t mean that he’s guilty of a crime. He could make the arguement that he’s being sued BECAUSE of the fact that his family is wealthy. Come on, ladies. Let’s be fair.
[...] commenter left a charmingly patronizing comment on one of my earlier posts about the Mercer University related sexual battery case today, and since it so nicely leads into [...]
My response to the above is here.
I’m sorry you view it as patronizing. You make me not want to be a feminist. You act as though I said he’s completely innocent. What I’m saying is that no one was in the room that night but Melanie and Day. That’s IT! Who are we to point the finger at him for being a) a man, and 2)automatically guilty for being such. You don’t have all of the details, which is why I think you are being far to harsh on this young man.