I would like to appeal for a change in the policy of not persecuting date rape cases where alcohol and drugs are involved. In abidance to your policy on prior written information, this detailed documentation is to inform you prior to the appeal am about to place on policy change. As a pledge, I would like to advocate for a change in the policy of not prosecuting of date rape cases, especially when alcohol and drugs are involved. I’m writing in abidance to your request of presenting a written document on the issue.
As a definition, Date rape, also commonly identified as acquaintance rape is a known form of rape in which there exist a potential romantic relationship between the two partners at the moment the sexual assault occurs. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, date rapes are among the highest number of rapes (Krebs, 2007) . The US department that is in charge of justice administrators created Statistical programs that critically analyze crimes within cities. Two of the statistical programs formed are Uniform crime reporting program (UCR), and the National crime victimization survey (NCVs) are directed for diverse tenacities and use different methods (Finkelhor, 2013) . NCVs collect data on crimes agonized by persons and family circle, whether the crimes were reported to the police or not is irrelevant (Krebs, 2007) . Also, the division approximates the ratio of each crime reported to law enforcement, and it then recapitulates the motives that affected give for reporting to the law enforcers or not. On the other hand, the UCR program created by FBI in 1929 collects information on a robbery, forcible rape, aggravated rape and date rapes which are not put into consideration most of the times as they are considered illegitimate. However, the main downside of using NVCS is that the information is considered only if the statistical levels rate above 90% confidence intervals around all survey estimates. UCR, conversely, bases its information on the definite accounts of felonies reported by police agencies. The individual program has exceptional strengths. The UCR offers a measure of the total number of crimes conveyed to the law enforcement agencies all over the country (Krebs, 2007) . The UCR's accompanying Homicide Reports offers one of the most reliable, yet judicious information on the degree and nature of homicides in the country. On the other hand, NCVS serves as the the principal source of data on the characteristics of felonious oppression and on the amount and kinds of delinquencies not conveyed to law enforcement establishments.
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For clarity purposes, there are different types of rape. To begin with, Statutory rape as itemized in by both federal and state law is that which involves sexual activities with an individual under the minimum age which is considered unlawful in all cases (Planty, 2013) . Every so often this age is 12. There is customary a specific age, acknowledged as the age of consent. Sexual acts with an individual above the minimum age but below the age of consent may be considered rape depending on the perpetrator. In contrast, spousal rape is a kind of rape relating a person’s companion regardless of whether the partners are married. Date rape, on the other hand, pertains to when one of the two parties in a social relationship sets out to sexually assault the other one. It also may be referred to as acquaintance rape. Many at times, some victims do not recognize acquaintance rape. However, it is imperative to recollect that sexual activity can be invoked at any prearranged time and a previous relationship does not essentially mean that rape cannot befall. Date rape is also different as the two parties are out on a willing basis, but the sexual assault is carried out when the victim is drugged with date rape drugs hence the victim is not able to defend themselves.
Commonly utilized date rape drugs include: flunitrazepam, fast acting benzodiazepine and gamma-hydroxybutyrate and its congeners are amongst the most prevalent drugs used for this purpose. The gamma-hydroxybutyrate is easily procured at some gymnasiums, popular bars, discos, and clubs, as well as over the counter
The idea of not presenting date rape cases for prosecution in court is not right. If in fact, it is a wrong public and social policy because the assaulted are never in their right senses at the times of their sexual violation. Therefore, they are supposed to be helped to get justice as they usually would not have given an okay for the perpetrators to have sex with them. It is, therefore, a crime that should be put to prosecution in order to get justice done. If this does not happen, then the perpetrators will keep taking advantage, and this would turn out to be a more participated in the crime.
Victims of date rape are often viewed by the perpetrators just as they are scrutinized by their peers, friends, family, and by actors in the criminal justice system. The perpetrator’s motivation is derived from the previous affiliation amid the victim and the culprit, and this knowledge legitimizes the perception of the victim as the aggrieved party rather than actually excusing the perpetrator’s behavior (Planty, 2013) . Date rapists, in actual sense, usually take advantage of how much they know of the weak points of their victims so as to get through them.
There are major challenges that make date rape prosecutions difficult. These include the fact that sexual violence is infamously tough to amount, and that there is always no single source of information that makes available a complete picture of the crime. Also, it is hard to present an act of forceful sex on the victims as quite often; there is neither sign of force or fights before the act of assault. It’s also viewed as a free will act as the perpetrator, and the victim usually would have met on a free will basis.
Society generally views date rape not as an act of offense, as the victims often have a potential romantic relationship with the offenders. This is could also be because the victims usually would have been out on a date with the offenders at their own free will, and not out of force or blackmail. Hence, the rape might tend to not be viewed as an assault, owing to a societal basis. Mostly, the victim is blamed and said to have availed them for the activity.
As a personal opinion, I strongly believe that acts of date rape should be presented to the justice system for matters to do with prosecution and retribution, as the victims are often not in their right mindsets when the assault takes place, hence not in the right state to give consent for the activity. Justice is, therefore, required for the assaulted.
References
Finkelhor, D. T. (2013). JAMA pediatrics, 167(7). Violence, crime, and abuse exposure in a national sample of children and youth: an update. , 614-621.
Krebs, C. P. (2007). The campus sexual assault (CSA) study: Final report. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice, US Department of Justice.
Planty, M. L.-M. (2013). Female victims of sexual violence, 1994-2010. Bureau of Justice Statistics.
