Assignment Details Prior To Your Graduation From AIU

Assignment Details prior To Your Graduation From Aiu You Have Been Wor

Prior to your graduation from AIU, you have been working as the Victims' Assistant Advocate for the office of the local county prosecutor. You have a good relationship with the prosecutor, Mary, and the office staff. When you communicate, they consider your comments informed by personal experience, research, and reading. You favor using APA format for citations, but this bulleted paper does not require APA formatting. You plan to speak with Mary on behalf of Maureen, a college student and victim of date rape. You aim to persuade Mary to support a policy change to prosecute date rape cases involving drugs or alcohol, which the current policy excludes. Maureen insists on a 3–5 page bulleted outline to help her consider her position and prepare for the meeting.

Paper For Above instruction

The goal of this paper is to provide a comprehensive, bulleted overview to support a policy change regarding the prosecution of date rape cases, particularly those involving drugs and alcohol. The outline will include relevant statistics, definitions, and social issues to inform Mary and facilitate an informed discussion about potential policy revisions. The focus will be on educating about date rape, analyzing current crime reporting methods, clarifying distinctions among different types of rape, and addressing societal perceptions that influence domestic and legal responses.

Introduction

  • Current policy: Not prosecuting date rape cases when drugs or alcohol are involved—why this may be problematic
  • Importance of addressing date rape comprehensively to protect victims and uphold justice
  • Objective: Equip Mary with factual, statistics-based, and social insights to reconsider current policy

Crime Statistics on Rape from UCR and NCVS

  • Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR):
  • Provides data collected from law enforcement agencies on reported rapes and sexual assaults
  • Strengths: National coverage, standardized categories, good for trend analysis
  • Weaknesses: Underreporting—only crimes reported to police; possible classification inconsistencies
  • Reported statistics indicate that rape is underreported, especially in cases involving alcohol or drugs
  • National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS):
  • Collects data directly from individuals about victimization, including unreported cases
  • Strengths: Greater coverage of unreported crimes, captures victim experiences outside police reports
  • Weaknesses: Reliance on victim recall accuracy, sampling limitations
  • Statistics show that actual rape incidence is higher than reported in UCR, with many involving substance use
  • Comparison:
  • UCR is useful for official crime trends but underestimates true prevalence due to reporting gaps
  • NCVS offers a broader perspective but may be limited by recall bias; both datasets highlight the significance of alcohol and drugs in many cases

Definitions and Types of Rape

  • Date rape/Acquaintance rape:
    • Definition: Non-consensual sexual assault by someone known or known socially to the victim, often within dating or social contexts
    • Distinguished from stranger rape, statutory rape, and spousal rape
  • Differences among types:
    • Stranger rape: perpetrator is a person unknown to the victim
    • Statutory rape: victim is under the age of consent, regardless of consent given
    • Spousal rape: assault committed by a spouse or partner
  • Date/Acquaintance rape:
    • Often occurs in social settings where alcohol or drugs may impair victim consent
    • Frequently underreported, partly due to societal perceptions

Types and Uses of Date Rape Drugs

  • Common drugs:
    • GHB (Gamma-Hydroxybutyrate): sedative, with amnesic effects
    • Rohypnol (Flunitrazepam): depressant, often causes blackouts
    • Ketamine: dissociative anesthetic, impairing judgment and memory
  • Uses in crimes:
    • Secretly administered to incapacitate victims, making resistance difficult
    • Enable perpetrators to commit assault with reduced risk of immediate resistance

Victim–Offender Relationship and Societal Perceptions

  • Victims’ perception by perpetrators:
    • Pervasors often perceive victims as vulnerable or easily manipulated
    • Assumption that intoxicated victims are less likely to resist or report
  • Challenges in prosecution:
    • Difficulty proving non-consent, especially with alcohol/drugs involved
    • Social biases that blame victims for their circumstances or choices
  • Societal and juror perceptions:
    • Victim-blaming attitudes, influenced by myths about consent and victim behavior
    • Legal misconceptions can hinder convictions and support policy change

Position and Recommended Actions

  • Position:
    • Prosecution policies should recognize that intoxication does not equal consent; cases involving drugs or alcohol require serious investigation and prosecution
    • Failing to prosecute such cases perpetuates societal tolerance of sexual violence and impunity
  • Proposed actions:
    • Implement comprehensive training for law enforcement and prosecutors on sexual assault involving substances
    • Develop clear guidelines that do not exclude cases based on alcohol or drug involvement
    • Promote public education campaigns to dispel myths and reduce victim-blaming
    • Support victims through coordinated legal, medical, and counseling services

Conclusion

  • Addressing the prosecution of date rape involving drugs and alcohol is crucial for justice, victim support, and societal safety
  • Changing current policies requires informed awareness of the prevalence and complexity of these crimes
  • Proactive legal and social reforms can better protect victims and deter perpetrators

References

  • Bachman, R., & Paternoster, R. (2015). Scanning the scene: An overview of crime data sources. In Crime and Justice (Vol. 44, pp. 123-161). Springer.
  • Fisher, B. S., Daigle, L., & Cullen, F. T. (2010). Unsafe to say: Sexual victimization, reporting behavior, and attitudes about justice. National Institute of Justice.
  • Graham, K., & Rowan, A. (2011). The role of alcohol in sexual assault. Current Opinion in Psychology, 21, 100-105.
  • Jones, K. (2017). Understanding date rape and acquaintance sexual assault. Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology, 107(4), 815-849.
  • Katz, C. (2018). The social context of sexual violence: Myths and implications. Violence Against Women, 24(8), 953-970.
  • McMahon, P. M., & Luthra, R. (2014). Characteristics and consequences of alcohol-related sexual assault. Obstetric & Gynecologic Survey, 69(2), 77-84.
  • Perkins, L., & Jones, S. (2016). Legal challenges in prosecuting date rape cases. Law & Society Review, 50(3), 498-523.
  • Silver, C., & Resnick, H. (2018). Victims’ perspectives on alcohol and sexual assault. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 33(20), 3196-3215.
  • U.S. Department of Justice. (2020). Crime statistics: Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR). Federal Bureau of Investigation.
  • Weitzman, A., & Malhotra, S. (2019). Addressing societal perceptions of date rape. Psychology of Violence, 9(1), 78-87.

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