Lol, that's a problem, isn't it? For the prosecutor.NineBerry wrote:Lol, how could the prosecution prove in any case where there are no other witnesses except the victim that there was theft and not voluntary giving?
Reverse the Burden of Proof in Sexual Assault Matters
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Hermit
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Re: Reverse the Burden of Proof in Sexual Assault Matters
I am, somehow, less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein’s brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops. - Stephen J. Gould
Re: Reverse the Burden of Proof in Sexual Assault Matters
That's why it's not required in practice.
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Forty Two
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Re: Reverse the Burden of Proof in Sexual Assault Matters
Well, in my state, merely possessing stolen property is not a crime unless you knew it was stolen. Obviously, if you stole it, then your crime is theft, larceny, robbery or what have you. But, if you are just "in possession" of property that is stolen, then you wouldn't normally be engaged in criminal behavior. If you try to traffic in it, knowing it was stolen, then you can be prosecuted for that. One way they prove that is if you obtained products at substantially below going market value - so, if you're buying over the counter medications for like, $1.00 a box when they cost $10.00 a box, that's supposed to be an indicator that you "reasonably should have known" the products were stolen.
If mere possession of stolen property were a crime, then if someone robbed a liquor store and then gave you a bottle of scotch as a present, you'd be guilty. The burden is on you to prove that you didn't know he had stolen the scotch. The burden is on the prosecution to show that you did know or reasonably should have known that you received stolen goods. At least that's the way it is here.
If mere possession of stolen property were a crime, then if someone robbed a liquor store and then gave you a bottle of scotch as a present, you'd be guilty. The burden is on you to prove that you didn't know he had stolen the scotch. The burden is on the prosecution to show that you did know or reasonably should have known that you received stolen goods. At least that's the way it is here.
“When I was in college, I took a terrorism class. ... The thing that was interesting in the class was every time the professor said ‘Al Qaeda’ his shoulders went up, But you know, it is that you don’t say ‘America’ with an intensity, you don’t say ‘England’ with the intensity. You don’t say ‘the army’ with the intensity,” she continued. “... But you say these names [Al Qaeda] because you want that word to carry weight. You want it to be something.” - Ilhan Omar
Re: Reverse the Burden of Proof in Sexual Assault Matters
But the owner of the liquor store says he saw you stealing the bottle while you say you were given the bottle for free by the owner!
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Forty Two
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Re: Reverse the Burden of Proof in Sexual Assault Matters
Well, if that's all there is, they'll probably not even arrest me. The cops would ask the liquor store owner for his security camera feed to see if they can corroborate that I was in the store. The burden of proof is not on me to show I was not at the store. Although, I am free to advance an alibi, if I have one. The fact that I am not allocated the burden of proof doesn't mean I can't resolve the issue with an ironclad defense.
“When I was in college, I took a terrorism class. ... The thing that was interesting in the class was every time the professor said ‘Al Qaeda’ his shoulders went up, But you know, it is that you don’t say ‘America’ with an intensity, you don’t say ‘England’ with the intensity. You don’t say ‘the army’ with the intensity,” she continued. “... But you say these names [Al Qaeda] because you want that word to carry weight. You want it to be something.” - Ilhan Omar
Re: Reverse the Burden of Proof in Sexual Assault Matters
It is established that you were at the store. There are witnesses that saw you leaving the store with the bottle. Still, your story is that you were given the bottle for free by the shop owner while the shop owner says you stole the bottle.
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Forty Two
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Re: Reverse the Burden of Proof in Sexual Assault Matters
Hmmm.... well, now we've changed the facts.NineBerry wrote:It is established that you were at the store. There are witnesses that saw you leaving the store with the bottle. Still, your story is that you were given the bottle for free by the shop owner while the shop owner says you stole the bottle.
The result would be whether it sounds reasonable that a shop owner, in the business of selling liquor, would simply give me a bottle of scotch. Was it my birthday, and is the shop owner my dad? I bet if that additional fact was present, getting a free bottle of scotch at the liquor store sounds fairly reasonable in terms of doubt. If, however, I don't know the shop owner personally, and I just claim that a stranger gave me a free scotch in a business which sells liquor, that might sound less than reasonable to a judge and jury.
“When I was in college, I took a terrorism class. ... The thing that was interesting in the class was every time the professor said ‘Al Qaeda’ his shoulders went up, But you know, it is that you don’t say ‘America’ with an intensity, you don’t say ‘England’ with the intensity. You don’t say ‘the army’ with the intensity,” she continued. “... But you say these names [Al Qaeda] because you want that word to carry weight. You want it to be something.” - Ilhan Omar
Re: Reverse the Burden of Proof in Sexual Assault Matters
So, if you have sex with a woman you didn't personally know before and she claims it was rape and you say it was voluntary...
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