Victim refuses to watch video of her rape, judge threatens to charge her

[The Straight Story]

Man Acquitted of Alleged Rape on Video

Jurors on Friday acquitted a man accused of taking part in an alleged rape of a teenager, who was videotaped as two men had sex with her.

A Cook County jury found Adrian Missbrenner, 20, not guilty of sexual assault and child pornography, a spokesman for the state's attorney's office said.

Missbrenner was one of four men charged in the assault of a woman who is now 20. The video, made in 2002, reportedly shows two men having sex with her and a third writing obscenities on her legs and thighs with a felt-tipped marker.

Earlier this week, Circuit Judge Kerry Kennedy threatened to charge the alleged victim with contempt of court after she refused to watch the videotape while being questioned by a defense attorney. A day later, however, Kennedy said defense attorneys could cross-examine the woman without her watching the video.

Kennedy's initial demand that the woman watch the 20-minute tape infuriated victims' advocacy groups and despite the judge's ultimate decision, Gov. Rod Blagojevich said he would draft legislation barring rape victims from having to view videotapes or photographs of the crime.


http://www.forbes.com/entrepreneurs/feeds/ap/2006/03/03/ap2570076.html

[MichiganVote]

1. Hope the people who let this maniac loose are the one's to pay

[helderheid]

2. I thought the judge flipped on this - I remember a DU thread about it a

couple days ago

[Nickster]

11. Yeah, he flipped at the last minute. I couldn't believe the morning news

when I first saw the story.

[Erika]

3. Can you imagine having to watch your own rape

with the court also watching.

I can't. It seems like women are now 2nd class. Men have the rights. Women must defend.

[FreedomAngel82]

6. We aren't even second class anymore

With the fundies treating us like trash and now shit like this. :mad:

[Sydnie]

13. We're not trash ....

we're incubators!

[Katherine Brengle]

19. right? bah i find myself getting very, very angry way too often these

days...

:banghead:

[Lars39]

7. He would have had to put me in jail.

I would not have sat there in silence at the mere suggestion, let alone the actual viewing.

[Fredda Weinberg]

8. And if the tape shows her lying about her age

and giving her consent? If the charge is statutory rape, it's definitely relevant.

[radio4progressives]

10. are you asserting that she was not 16, or that she was giving consent?

[Fredda Weinberg]

24. I haven't been following this case closely

But it seems that others here are assuming that the tape is simply being introduced into evidence to replay a coercive act. That doesn't make sense.

The only reasonable assumption is that the recording demonstrates the victim's willing participation.

I'm not asserting anything - but if my presumption is correct, the defense lawyers had an affirmative duty to ask. And considering the verdicts, I think my assumption is plausible.

[Katherine Brengle]

17. Relevant evidence, but the victim should not be required to watch it--

it could easily be viewed in closed session by the judge and jury without the victim being forced to watch as well.

[Fredda Weinberg]

23. You're assuming there was coercion

Was if it's just shameful?

I haven't followed this case closely, but it only seems reasonable that the defense wants to play this if it shows that the victim consented to the acts and possibly led the accused to believe she was of age.

[LisaL]

28. Oh for crying out loud. No one had said the defense shouldn't be

allowed to play the tape. It's ridiculous to even suggest that defense shouldn't be allowed to play the tape. There was no point for the girl to watch the tape.

[Katherine Brengle]

30. I am assuming nothing--but the "accuser" if you don't like the word victim

shouldn't be required to watch the video.

This is just simple common human decency.

[LisaL]

22. The accusation was not statutory rape.

She was drunk to the point that she was completely out of it, so she could not give any consent, according to the accusation.

[Fredda Weinberg]

25. And if the tape shows otherwise? e/m

[LisaL]

26. Do read the article. The jury apparently thought so.

[Lars39]

4. The judge initially threatened her with contempt of court?

Sounds like a pro-rapist judge, whether he changed his mind or not. Despicable.

[FreedomAngel82]

5. What the hell?

This is ridiculous.

[mohinoaklawnillinois]

9. Don't even get me started about this case.

The whole thing stinks big time... I hope everyone notices that this particular young man Adrian Missbrenner fled the US after he was accused and surrended to US authorities in Serbia last year and one of the others accused has fled to Albania and has yet to surrender.

Burr Ridge, IL is an enclave of million dollar homes. There is some serious money in that town..

IMO, the girl in this case just got raped again. I only hope the jurors in this case can sleep tonight. I guess these people think it's okay for a bunch of "school boys" to rape a 16 year old girl if the boys' parents have money...

I am sick over this...

:mad: :mad:

[Erika]

12. Yeah n/t

[omega minimo]

14. Why do you drag all these bullshit articles onto DU?

[Katherine Brengle]

18. what did that mean? (very curious...) n/t

[The Straight Story]

20. Hmmmmm

This is 'general' discussion, did not post it in politics.

Also, they are of importance to our society in general and life - something we all share. If we share outrage over bush and crew there is no reason we cannot over such things as the rest of the evil and idiocy going on in the country.

It's a big tent - and there are many big and small pictures to hang in that tent.

There can be 500 threads about one bush story, seems overly redundant to just add more. Other things are going on in our society which are sick and F*cked up - they need to be exposed and addressed as well.

Not to mention, people do tend to read these and reply more than the government stories I post from govexec and various other places....

[omega minimo]

21. Why not the Lounge?

Every OP I see from you is an article with no comment, on some "sick and F*cked up" irrelevant story-- "seems overly redundant to just add more."

"...they need to be exposed and addressed"? "people do tend to read these and reply more than the government stories I post"

That's because they're inflammatory bullshit.

Like we really needed a second "nipple kid" thread.........
:sarcasm:

[The Straight Story]

27. Heh

I posted the first one on nipple :)


As far as not putting a comment in most my threads, I am working a lot from home on PC and have multiple things going on, so I post what I can and comment later.

And how is this thread inflammatory? It is a real news article about some seriously f*cked up crap. We can email and protest idiot judges the same as we can other officials we are paying with our tax dollars. He is OUR employee.

"That's because they're inflammatory bullshit."

Which was your reply as to why people reply to them here on DU - which says more about how you might think about DU'ers than myself. Again, I have spent many hours on unclesam site (sub google site) and other government sites and find things of note in relation to our overall government to post. None seem to generate more than 1 reply or 2, so I post more on what I think people want to discuss.

[omega minimo]

33. "some seriously f*cked up crap."

"Which was your reply as to why people reply to them here on DU - which says more about how you might think about DU'ers than myself. "

Your admitting it-- you know inflammatory bs gets people going. You say the more "serious" threads don't.

"None seem to generate more than 1 reply or 2, so I post more on what I think people want to discuss."

Which apparently is "redundant" repetitive "seriously f*cked up crap."

The question was why litter up the place just to get a reaction.

[The Straight Story]

29. Here is a good example:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2491002

15 Arrested At White House Protesting U.S. Torture Practices

3 replies.

This thread quite a few more.

I try, I post a cross section of stories from religion to government to outrageous stories.

But why spend hours reading over usnpl (papers and news stations over all of U.S.) for more 'meaty' political items if no one cares to read or comment? And really, how many threads can we have about dick cheyney shooting some guy??

[Katherine Brengle]

32. Agreed--whenever I post something that is different from the ten thousand

other essentially duplicate posts, it usually ends up in obscurity almost immediately.

[smirkymonkey]

34. You noticed that too?

Part of the reason I don't start posts anymore.

[Katherine Brengle]

35. I usually don't--if it is something important, I usually have to resurrect

it a bunch of times for anyone to even read it.

[Katherine Brengle]

31. I don't really think this belongs in the Lounge...

The Lounge is for goofing off, blowing off steam, and generally having fun--not discussing a serious story about the judicial process. I don't think it is even remotely out of line for this to be posted here.

It does bug me when seriously useless stuff pops up on GD, but what can ya do... It is also annoying to see tons of posts about the exact same story, but it happens every single day.

[Nikki Stone 1]

15. This judge ought to be hogtied--and filmed in the process

Asshole.

[Katherine Brengle]

16. 1) Rape does not = having sex. 2) Why, in rape cases, are the victims

always the ones on trial???

Grr... :grr: