![]() In a recently published book, ''The Ultimate Violation,'' which is subtitled, ''Rape Trauma Syndrome: An Answer for Victims, Justice in the Courtroom,'' Patricia Rowland, a former San Diego prosecutor, detailed the difficulties she had using testimony about the syndrome in four criminal cases. The way in which testimony about rape trauma syndrome is used can depend on whether the case is a criminal one - in which the state tries to prove the defendant guilty and impose a prison sentence - or whether it is a civil matter in which the woman charges negligence, generally by a third party, such as a hotel or employer, and seeks damages.īut winning court acceptance of such testimony has been difficult. Hopefully, once jurors understand what is normal behavior, then the conviction rate will improve.'' Decisions are still made on the basis of her life style, behavior, physical appearance. ''In the final analysis, it's the person on the street who determines whether justice will be done, and it's clear that despite the massive public education that has gone on over the decade, the majority of people who end up sitting on juries still do not understand what rape means to the victim. ''Jurors still expect that a woman has not actually been raped if she has not put up ferocious resistance,'' said Mary Ann Largen, policy analyst for the Center for Women Policy Studies in Washington, who is visiting several cities to interview judges and lawyers on the need to revise rape laws. If she had consented, she presumably would not have demonstrated the symptoms.ĭiscussion of rape trauma syndrome is also used to help juries understand the victim and her behavior. Calling on an expert to describe rape trauma syndrome experienced by the woman is intended to demonstrate that she did not consent. With the corroboration of a witness no longer necessary, jurors are increasingly expected to weigh his words against hers. Rather he contends that it was with her consent, and she must prove that she did not acquiesce. The defendant does not deny that he had intercourse with the complainant. Legal authorities say most rape trials center on the issue of consent. Actually, the judgment of whether or not a rape occurred is largely based on the credibility of the defendant and the complainant. The most prevalent misconception about expert testimony on how rape affects victims is that it is used to prove that a rape occurred. Rape trauma syndrome manual#The organization categorized it as a form of post-traumatic stress disorder, the essential feature of which, the manual says, ''is the development of characteristic symptoms following a psychologically traumatic event that is generally outside the range of usual human experience.''ĭiscussion of rape trauma syndrome moved from the offices of therapists and rape crisis counselors to the courtroom in the early 1980's, although not with ease. Rape trauma syndrome received recognition in 1980 when the American Psychiatric Association incorporated it into its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Judges do not agree among themselves, nor do prosecutors, nor do feminist litigators working to change rape laws. ![]() And it is now the focus of a legal debate over whether testimony about it ought be used in court, and if so, for what purposes. ![]() It has been recognized by psychiatric authorities as a legitimate disorder. It has, for the last 11 years, had a name: rape trauma syndrome. What she was suffering from is not uncommon. In short, she was transformed from a healthy, well-adjusted individual into one who was emotionally adrift and floundering. She stayed away from friends, avoided sex and severed an important romantic relationship. ![]() ![]() She was tense, fearful, unable to concentrate on her work. She wept about it by day and dreamed of it at night. For more than a year after the rape occurred, the woman was haunted by it. ![]()
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