THE DAILY BLADE: Do You Swear To Tell The PC Truth, The Censored Truth And Nothing But The Truth That Will Set The Defendant Free?
Remember the rape victim in NE who was ordered by the judge not to use the words “rape,” "victim," "assailant" and "sexual assault" during her testimony so as not to prejudice the jury against her alleged attacker, Pamir Safi? She lost her appeal to be able to tell the trial court what happened to her in her own words, and is now taking her case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Apparently, muzzling plaintiffs and witnesses in criminal trials is a new jurisprudential trend. The National Law Journal reports that “a steadily increasing number of courts across the United States are prohibiting witnesses and victims from uttering certain words in front of a jury”:
Prosecutors and victims' rights advocates nationwide claim the courts are going too far in trying to cleanse witness testimony, all to protect a defendant's right to a fair trial. …
In addition to "rape," courts also have banned the terms "homicide," "drunk," "victim," "murderer," "killer" and "crime scene." …
[W]ords like "embezzle" and "defraud" also raise eyebrows in white-collar crime cases.
Criminal defense lawyers contend that words like "victim" and "rape" and "murder" undermine the presumption of innocence:
Attorney Jack King, spokesman for the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, defended the defense bar's efforts to ban certain words during trial.
For example, he said, there are several instances where defense lawyers are justified in trying to bar the use of the word “rape.” They include: if they are claiming the act was consensual; they are claiming there was no rape at all; or they are claiming the alleged victim was under the influence of a drug, or mentally ill, and therefore confused about what really happened. …
“I dispute any constitutional scholar that says the First Amendment trumps due process in the courtroom. It never has. It never will.”
As First Amendment lawyer Rex Heinke tells The National Law Journal, “It's pretty hard to prosecute a murder case without being able to say the word murder.” District Attorney James P. Fox in San Mateo County (CA) adds: “[T]he presumption of innocence argument only lasts as long as there's no other evidence to the contrary.”
Now, read this Associated Press article and imagine what this NY rape victim’s bowdlerized testimony might have been like:
[T]he 24-year-old woman told jurors this week about being raped repeatedly, scalded with boiling water and slashed across her eyelids during 19 unthinkable hours in her Upper Manhattan apartment. …
The woman testified that after Williams followed her off an elevator and claimed to be looking for a nonexistent neighbor, he strong-armed his way into her fifth-floor apartment.
He ordered her to take off her clothes and he raped her immediately. He went on to throw bleach at her eyes and glue her lips together, forced her to hack off her hair and swallow fistfuls of painkillers, and ordered her to gouge out her eyes with scissors, she said. He hurled boiling water and bleach at her when she refused, she said.
Prosecutor say Williams started the fire and left only after the victim had passed out from pain. They said they think he left then only because he was no longer able to exercise power over another human being.
The woman suffered burns, liver failure and other injuries that led to weeks in hospitals and months of physical therapy.
During the assault, she screamed and sobbed in fear and agony, implored him to kill her and tried to impale her neck with a pair of scissors to end her life herself.
Alleged assailant Robert Williams, 31, is being tried on charges that include kidnapping, rape and arson. He had already served an 8-year stint in prison for attempted murder, and could get a life sentence if convicted. Good thing the trial isn’t taking place in NE before Judge Jeffre Cheuvront, or Williams would have as much chance of getting convicted as a rapist in the U.K.
Vote For Hamish!
The Stiletto’s pal at The Oread Daily passed along this request:
Friday, June 20th is “National Take Your Dog to Work Day.” The Oread Daily is officially endorsing Hamish in the TYDTW Day Photo Contest, and asks for your vote. A golden retriever, Hamish is a “Certified Therapy Dog and Unofficial Student Counselor,” is almost as seasoned as John McCain in dog years, and accepts no money from lobbyists. Visit the Professional Pooch Gallery here, and click on the paws at the bottom of the photo of Hamish.
If Hamish wins, he could get these fabulous prizes: $500 cash; a $500 donation to an animal shelter; and two gift baskets, one of which is filled with doggie goodies. So vote early and vote often. (Votes from FL and MI will count in full.)
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