Is a rape victim liable/responsible for what happens to subsequent victims if they do not report the crime? What if the rape victim reports the crime but will not testify?

Is a rape victim liable/responsible for what happens to subsequent victims if they do not report the crime? What if the rape victim reports the crime but will not testify?

Absolutely not. The rapist is responsible for his/her own actions; no one else is responsible for the actions of a rapist.

It is not the victims fault that she got rape so I don't think she is responsible if someone else got rape. It's not easy for someone discuss what happen to them to anyone, there are some that might be able to communicate but others take years before they even discuss the topic. So I don't think the victim should be liable for what happen.

I think that they should report it no matter what, but not saying they should be responsible for it...I didn't report mine, but I'd feel like CRAP if I found out he did it again and I hadn't said anything.

Not liable no. But IMO it's the right thing to do.

Absolutely not. The rapist is responsible for his/her own actions; no one else is responsible for the actions of a rapist.

I agree

Not to mention that even reported rapists can and have raped again because the system does not put people away automatically. The act of reporting is just the first step in rolling the ball toward hopeful charges and incarceraton.

Not liable no. But IMO it's the right thing to do.

:agree

Absolutely not. The rapist is responsible for his/her own actions; no one else is responsible for the actions of a rapist.


this question made me sick to my stomach:( i agree with Eelo.
i didnt report him but if i could go back in time its the one thing i would change in my life. :sigh

i think it's the right thing for them to report it or testify...but if they can't, no, it is not their fault if there are subsequent rapes. they cannot control the actions of the rapist so therefore, they aren't liable, in my opinion.

Not liable no. But IMO it's the right thing to do.

yep...:agree The only one who can be held responsible is the ass who does that disgusting mess. But I know if I didn't report a rape and it happened again then I would personally feel responsible. That's just how I operate though.

Absolutely not. The rapist is responsible for his/her own actions; no one else is responsible for the actions of a rapist.

this question made me sick to my stomach:(

I agree 100%. The vicitm is NOT responisble for the rape or anything the rapist does. If she reports is that is wonderful but if for any reason she didn't, couldn't, wouldn't she isn't to blame for the crimes that man chooses to commit again. JMHO.

this question made me sick to my stomach:( i agree with Eelo.
i didnt report him but if i could go back in time its the one thing i would change in my life. :sigh

I asked it because inevitably someone always says it to the rape victims. ;) Not because I think they're responsible in any way, in fact I think it's a callous and ignorant thing to say to someone that has been raped, having had it said to me before as well.

Absolutely not. The rapist is responsible for his/her own actions; no one else is responsible for the actions of a rapist.

:agree

I know that when it happened to me I never reported it and it happened to someone else who went to my college. I have lived with the guilt for the past 11 years and I wish I had the courage to report it........

I asked it because inevitably someone always says it to the rape victims. ;) Not because I think they're responsible in any way, in fact I think it's a callous and ignorant thing to say to someone that has been raped, having had it said to me before as well.

You're right, it does come up. I've seen it a lot, "You HAVE to report this, what if he does it again, then won't you feel just awful?" as if it's her fault he's a predator.

In one of the Dear S.O.S. rape threads, one of the posters came in and sauid something ont he lines of "Screw that, report it if you feel safe reporting it, but don't jeopardize your safety and your well-being. Nobody can make you feel obligated to report....." and I though it was a very, very powerful piece of advice.

Good heavens. The woman is victimized once, let's not complicate things by making her feel like she'd be at fault if he raped someone else. That totally relieves the predator of his own responsibility.

It's on HIM.

I think it is the responsible thing to do- I do not think they are responsible that the rapist raped again- but knowing they raped again and I could have prevented it still haunts me to this day and it was 30 yrs ago.

You're right, it does come up. I've seen it a lot, "You HAVE to report this, what if he does it again, then won't you feel just awful?" as if it's her fault he's a predator.

In one of the Dear S.O.S. rape threads, one of the posters came in and sauid something ont he lines of "Screw that, report it if you feel safe reporting it, but don't jeopardize your safety and your well-being. Nobody can make you feel obligated to report....." and I though it was a very, very powerful piece of advice.

Good heavens. The woman is victimized once, let's not complicate things by making her feel like she'd be at fault if he raped someone else. That totally relieves the predator of his own responsibility.

It's on HIM.

ITA.

i was raped twice - i reported the first one, nothing happened to him (our police force in my hometown is just laughable), so i didn't even bother reporting the second one. it wasn't worth it. if one of those douchebags decides to rape somebody else, i will feel no more guilty if the one i didn't report rapes somebody than if the first one does. either way it would be horrible for whoever is involved, but i'm not going to feel guilty about MY actions or lack thereof. i was just trying to get through with my sanity, my concern definitely was NOT for my rapists' future actions.

I was puzzled and Andrew gave a good answer.

Morally yes. Legally no.

No, but choosing to not report and prosecute is a personal guilt that many survivors carry around for the rest of their life.

I was puzzled and Andrew gave a good answer.

Morally yes. Legally no.

I don't see how i'm morally responsible for what my rapist does once he's done using me. am i more morally responsible for what the second one does, since i didn't report him? am i still morally responsible for what the first does, even though i reported him, since nothing came of it? do i have to keep going with it until somebody actually does something to him? at what price to MY mental state?

in my opinion, what any rapist chooses to do is on HIM. all of it. morally, legally, HE'S the rapist. his victims are not his moral keepers. his victims are just, simply, his victims. the only thing a rape victim is responsible for, imo, is doing what they can to make it through the awful experience, and try to heal.

Although, to be brutally honest......

If I was victim #2, #3, or #4 --or my worst nightmare, the parent of victim #2, #3, or #4--- and I found out that the perpetrator was still running loose because the earlier victims didn't report, I think I'd be pretty angry.

It's one thing for me to say here that we shouldn't push to report, and we should be strongly supportive of the victim, but I can't say for sure what I'd feel if, God forbid, I was ever in that position.

I really don't know.

I asked it because inevitably someone always says it to the rape victims. ;) Not because I think they're responsible in any way, in fact I think it's a callous and ignorant thing to say to someone that has been raped, having had it said to me before as well.


oh i wasnt saying it makes em sick that you ASKED the question i just meant its a sickening thing...i dont know it hits close to home i guess and thats what makes me sick. IF somethign were to happen and he did the same thign to another girl then yes i would feel ridiculously guilty. but i got the courage 3 years too late basically...i think to hear that would make me want to punch someone lol :D and im not a violent person:P

Although, to be brutally honest......

If I was victim #2, #3, or #4 --or my worst nightmare, the parent of victim #2, #3, or #4--- and I found out that the perpetrator was still running loose because the earlier victims didn't report, I think I'd be pretty angry.

It's one thing for me to say here that we shouldn't push to report, and we should be strongly supportive of the victim, but I can't say for sure what I'd feel if, God forbid, I was ever in that position.

I really don't know.

the problem is, though, you probably wouldn't really know the reason why the rapist was still running loose. i mean, it's pretty easy to say i wish the victim before me had reported him, but for all we really know, they did report him and nothing happened, or he got a slap on the hand and set free, or she tried to report him but there wasn't sufficient evidence to do anything, etc, etc. honestly, blaming the previous victims *to me* seems like an easy way out. blame the one who committed the actual crime.

personally, i think the all the victim should do, whether #1 or #256, is do what they can to get through it, and try to resume a normal life, and save what sense of self they can.

IF they report and AND the police believe her AND there's enough evidence to go to trial AND she can convince a judge/jury to believe her AND they convict him AND give him a just sentence, then that's a good thing, and the victim did a good thing.

but the victim is responsible for taking care of herself, not taking care of herself on top of any future victims there might be. some assclown didn't rape me because the victim before me didn't report him, he raped me because of HIS own douchebag self.

Absolutely not. The rapist is responsible for his/her own actions; no one else is responsible for the actions of a rapist.

I agree one gajillion percent and then I am going to dart out of this thread :)

I did want to say that I was forced to report it by the military illegally refusing to treat me unless I did. I lost in court and I still feel bad about any future victims he may of had. I don't think it always helps to report I know my day in court did me almost as much damage as the actual rape it was like being raped all over again.

the problem is, though, you probably wouldn't really know the reason why the rapist was still running loose.

Here's where my ignorance (blissful ignorance, believe me) of this stuff shows. I'm actually a little relieved to see your response here.

i mean, it's pretty easy to say i wish the victim before me had reported him, but for all we really know, they did report him and nothing happened, or he got a slap on the hand and set free, or she tried to report him but there wasn't sufficient evidence to do anything, etc, etc. honestly, blaming the previous victims *to me* seems like an easy way out. blame the one who committed the actual crime.

personally, i think the all the victim should do, whether #1 or #256, is do what they can to get through it, and try to resume a normal life, and save what sense of self they can.

Absolutely.

IF they report and AND the police believe her AND there's enough evidence to go to trial AND she can convince a judge/jury to believe her AND they convict him AND give him a just sentence, then that's a good thing, and the victim did a good thing.

Again...... absolutely.

but the victim is responsible for taking care of herself, not taking care of herself on top of any future victims there might be. some assclown didn't rape me because the victim before me didn't report him, he raped me because of HIS own douchebag self.

I'm sorry you're so smart about this. I really am.

I hope I never have to be as knowledgeable about this as you are.

Not liable no. But IMO it's the right thing to do.

yep...:agree The only one who can be held responsible is the ass who does that disgusting mess. But I know if I didn't report a rape and it happened again then I would personally feel responsible. That's just how I operate though.

I was puzzled and Andrew gave a good answer.

Morally yes. Legally no.

I agree with all these.

That is like not taking the keys away from a drunk who wants to drive.

I couldn't NOT do it.

I agree one gajillion percent and then I am going to dart out of this thread :)

I did want to say that I was forced to report it by the military illegally refusing to treat me unless I did. I lost in court and I still feel bad about any future victims he may of had. I don't think it always helps to report I know my day in court did me almost as much damage as the actual rape it was like being raped all over again.

That was SO much BULLSHIT.... which I'm sure you know now, but you weren't in any position to stand on then. You did get victimized twice.

Argh.

Although, to be brutally honest......

If I was victim #2, #3, or #4 --or my worst nightmare, the parent of victim #2, #3, or #4--- and I found out that the perpetrator was still running loose because the earlier victims didn't report, I think I'd be pretty angry.

It's one thing for me to say here that we shouldn't push to report, and we should be strongly supportive of the victim, but I can't say for sure what I'd feel if, God forbid, I was ever in that position.

I really don't know.

I'm conflicted about the question too. I completely agree with the above...

That was SO much BULLSHIT.... which I'm sure you know now, but you weren't in any position to stand on then. You did get victimized twice.

Argh.

Tip of the iceberg Eelo my friend and I have a ton (putting it way to mildly) of anger over it. I didn't know that was illegal at the time. I wonder all the time how many others are treated that way. It bothers me almost as much as knowing my rapist walked free and clear.

I agree with all these.

That is like not taking the keys away from a drunk who wants to drive.

I couldn't NOT do it.

i dont think that can be said unless youve been in the situation though
i ALWAYS said that but when it happened i was 16 and scared as hell that my dad would kill him my family would hate me any guys in the future would look at me like i was a whore. there were alot of things that kept me from doing it then because like i said i was 16 and young and scared. now at 22 i look back and wish i had the courage and the strength but i didnt at the time

Going against the grain, yes a rape victim should report it, immediately and not yrs later like you sometimes hear in cases.

Maybe I feel differently because having been a multiple victim to a cowardly asshole who's previous victims never stood up and made themselves heard. Maybe if they did then me and the 5 others wouldn't have had to endure the hell and pain we went through. Yes I am still bitter regarding it.

I don't see how i'm morally responsible for what my rapist does once he's done using me. am i more morally responsible for what the second one does, since i didn't report him? am i still morally responsible for what the first does, even though i reported him, since nothing came of it? do i have to keep going with it until somebody actually does something to him? at what price to MY mental state?

in my opinion, what any rapist chooses to do is on HIM. all of it. morally, legally, HE'S the rapist. his victims are not his moral keepers. his victims are just, simply, his victims. the only thing a rape victim is responsible for, imo, is doing what they can to make it through the awful experience, and try to heal.

I feel that a victim should do everything in their power to make sure they are the LAST victim. If you've reported it, you've done what you could.

I think the victim needs to be watching out for their personal MENTAL health above someone else. Maybe it's selfish, but I don't see it as wrong in any way, moral or legal. :dunno Reporting it and going through that whole process is harrowing, and can damage someone more mentally than just trying to move on with life and survive. All situations are different, as all people are different. It may be cut and dry for someone to report in one case, and a lot more complicated in another.

Although, to be brutally honest......

If I was victim #2, #3, or #4 --or my worst nightmare, the parent of victim #2, #3, or #4--- and I found out that the perpetrator was still running loose because the earlier victims didn't report, I think I'd be pretty angry.

It's one thing for me to say here that we shouldn't push to report, and we should be strongly supportive of the victim, but I can't say for sure what I'd feel if, God forbid, I was ever in that position.

I really don't know.

agree

I feel that a victim should do everything in their power to make sure they are the LAST victim. If you've reported it, you've done what you could.

Agree as well.

Again I've never been in the situation so what I'd do is purely speculation.

I think the victim needs to be watching out for their personal MENTAL health above someone else. Maybe it's selfish, but I don't see it as wrong in any way, moral or legal. :dunno Reporting it and going through that whole process is harrowing, and can damage someone more mentally than just trying to move on with life and survive. All situations are different, as all people are different. It may be cut and dry for someone to report in one case, and a lot more complicated in another.

:agree

Originally Posted by RunAwayLove
this question made me sick to my stomach i agree with Eelo.
i didnt report him but if i could go back in time its the one thing i would change in my life.


I was treated like a dog by the police when I reported mine. If I didn't report him and later on somthing happened to him, I wouldn't be questioned. So I can see why someone wouldn't report. But if it happens to another girl, which it has, they will have my case and if it can help another girl I feel alittle better than a cold fish to fu%k:)

I think the victim needs to be watching out for their personal MENTAL health above someone else. Maybe it's selfish, but I don't see it as wrong in any way, moral or legal. :dunno Reporting it and going through that whole process is harrowing, and can damage someone more mentally than just trying to move on with life and survive. All situations are different, as all people are different. It may be cut and dry for someone to report in one case, and a lot more complicated in another.

I agree, never once in all of this did I ever think about victims of his that came before me. It never occurred to me to do so. I always have assumed there were more after me because getting off in court would of made him feel he was justified or "right". That is one part that makes me angry right there.

Not reporting him is the only regret I can truthfully say I have in 19 years of life.

However, hell no, I do not think I would be responsible for his raping somebody else, were he to ever do such an awful thing again...

Not reporting him is the only regret I can truthfully say I have in 19 years of life.

However, hell no, I do not think I would be responsible for his raping somebody else, were he to ever do such an awful thing again...

same here except 22 years:D
when i tell someone about my situation now ( i couldnt even talk about it until about a year ago) it is usually if they are in the same situation and i do say you should report them for your own piece of mind and for the safety of others BUT i know ho hard that is because i didnt. and when anyone comes abck at me with well you should have reported them. you might as well slap me in the face... it was 6 years ago and im STILL stuggling with it

they are not liable, I feel very strongly on this. Yes they should report the rape because it could help get the rapist off the street, BUT it is a humiliating crime one that some people have all they can deal with just to function far less go through the court process.

I went through the court process it is hard!! And the court system still today has a hard time seeing rape victims as VICTIMS not someone who asked for it, also the burden of proof is on the prosecution so therefor it is sometimes hard to make the case, because of many factors, the rape victim may have taken a shower before having a rape kit done, contaminated evidence, difficulty with matching the dna they take from the victim to an abuser because not everyone is in the police DNA database.

The other thought is what if they do report the rape and they don't catch the guy, the victim did what the law requests, would a person still consider them responsible if the attacker goes after another girl?

I don't even see how someone could think that way, to be honest.

Fuck NO it's not the victim's fault. The victim is a VICTIM. I don't believe there is a real responsibility to anyone other than the VICTIM herself to report it.

And then there are stories like mine.

The guy who did it was in the military. I reported it both to local police (because it happened off-base).... and I reported it to the MP. Neither did a fucking thing about it... because they both claimed it was out of their jurisdiction :rolleyes

And then.... when my current DB did some "research" on the guy.... turns out.......................................

He'd already victimized other women.

Not like i didn't try

I think that they should report it no matter what, but not saying they should be responsible for it...I didn't report mine, but I'd feel like CRAP if I found out he did it again and I hadn't said anything.

:agree

There is a train of thought forming but I REALLY don't want to offend anyone by asking.....off to search the web.

Maybe I need to just stay out of this thread. :sigh

Is a rape victim liable/responsible for what happens to subsequent victims if they do not report the crime? What if the rape victim reports the crime but will not testify?

a previous victim cant be held responsible for the actions of their attacker on the following victim.

it's always the victims choice of wether to testify or not. if they dont testify, then it's the job of the detectives and police to make as strong a forensics case as possible.

pressure is always put on the victim to testify. most of that is for the benefit of the jury. put a live face to the cold hard facts always puts a huge sway on things.

Absolutely not. The rapist is responsible for his/her own actions; no one else is responsible for the actions of a rapist.

:yes

For a rape victim.. the idea of reporting the rape and going through the process of charging and trial and such... can seem WORSE than the rape itself because you have to live through it x amount of times until the trial is over and there is a charge.

Also, unless there are MANY people testifying against said rapist, it is likely that they will get off fairly easily and will be back in the general public quickly enough to continue raping... making many victims feel there is no point because it will just happen again after all the mental anguish they had to go through.

Reporting a rape basically means (to many) being raped over and over again mentally. I do not blame a single victim for not being willing to come forward with that.

I blame the rapist and the rapist only for raping in the first place and causing such mental anguish.

:edit
I also want to add.. that more than just reliving the rape in detail for the trial... a victim ALSO has to put up with victim blaming (well you were drunk, you were wearing a short skirt and a halter, well you were flirting with him, well you didn't actually SAY no, you said no but you didn't fight back... etc)
It is one of the ONLY crimes where the victim is blamed (you don't often hear "you got mugged because you were wearing a nice suit/watch, it is your fault your house got robbed because it is so nice, your son was murdered because he was making fun of the murderer a few years ago")
It is HARD to not only continue giving rape details and HEAR about it over and over.. but to also have to DEFEND your rights as a person to NOT be touched REGARDLESS of what you were wearing, what you were drinking, if you had been flirting... or WORSE... if you didn't say no or fight back because you were SCARED of getting HURT.

If there is no yes or concrete PROOF of consent... it is rape.

:yes

For a rape victim.. the idea of reporting the rape and going through the process of charging and trial and such... can seem WORSE than the rape itself because you have to live through it x amount of times until the trial is over and there is a charge.

Also, unless there are MANY people testifying against said rapist, it is likely that they will get off fairly easily and will be back in the general public quickly enough to continue raping... making many victims feel there is no point because it will just happen again after all the mental anguish they had to go through.

Reporting a rape basically means (to many) being raped over and over again mentally. I do not blame a single victim for not being willing to come forward with that.

I blame the rapist and the rapist only for raping in the first place and causing such mental anguish.

:edit
I also want to add.. that more than just reliving the rape in detail for the trial... a victim ALSO has to put up with victim blaming (well you were drunk, you were wearing a short skirt and a halter, well you were flirting with him, well you didn't actually SAY no, you said no but you didn't fight back... etc)
It is one of the ONLY crimes where the victim is blamed (you don't often hear "you got mugged because you were wearing a nice suit/watch, it is your fault your house got robbed because it is so nice, your son was murdered because he was making fun of the murderer a few years ago")
It is HARD to not only continue giving rape details and HEAR about it over and over.. but to also have to DEFEND your rights as a person to NOT be touched REGARDLESS of what you were wearing, what you were drinking, if you had been flirting... or WORSE... if you didn't say no or fight back because you were SCARED of getting HURT.

If there is no yes or concrete PROOF of consent... it is rape.

To the bold absofuckingloutly! To this day I can remember his lawyer and always in my mind I hear her saying over and over two things: why did you kiss him (earlier in the evening) and why didn't you scream while he was raping you. I have the perfect answers now 10 years later, (1. he was attractive and a kiss does not mean I want you to attack me, 2. I did not scream because I shut down after he shook me hard enough to hit my head against the floor and leave finger shaped bruises on my arm while telling me to shut the fuck up. I was scared he was hurting me I did what he said) in court it was all I could do just to answer with an I don't know when I wanted to just scream wordlessly at everyone in the court room. When I left the witness stand I went in the bathroom and had a full blown panic attack. That moment was hell, if there is a hell and I go there that will be what I relive over and over.

That is why I always advise that if they can report please do but if they feel it will hurt them more mentally then that is ok as well. They are not responsible in any way for anything the rapist may do after he rapes them. Not morally/ethically or even legally.

I reported mine, but I wouldn't testify, I just didn't have it in me to face him in court. I don't think I should be responsible for his actions after that?

I absolutely do not think that the victim is responsible for the rapists actions after their rape.

the victim should never be held responsible for her rapist, especially if he repeats (a HUGE percentage of offenders repeat their crime). Even if she does report it, there's no telling that he'll be caught. I think a victim should report it so that there's a higher chance that this guy will be taken off the streets, but I dont think the victim should be responsible in ANY situation.