8 year old girl admits lying about rape allegations

[FlyMeToDunoon]

I felt really sad about this for more than one reason.
here

wright stuff piece starting now

Contradiction in his intro

the boys didn't even know about sex, so how could they have raped

teh girl described beign raped, she lied for sweets, so at 8 she knows about rape, but the boys don't?

cobblers

I do believe children are capable of crime, but also that their capability and understanding are more variable than adults, and that cause is more important than with adult crimes. I believe children are more capable of change, so punishment should be of a rehabilitive nature as much as possible.

But the media happily accepted that 10 year olds could murder a toddler with full understanding, or commit GBH against two boys of similar ages. Why not rape? My opinion of all three cases was pretty similar, but why is this case being seen differently by the media, and presumably a lot of the public?

A lot of opinion on the Bulger and Edlington cases was that the causes didn't matter, no matter what they had previously experienced, they were "evil" and that was the end of it. I think the causes do matter, and it is important to find out what they are, and how to prevent things from happening again. There is a failure in society when somehow children go so wrong at such a young age.

normally horrible carole malone saying that 10yo boys can rape, and that rape is a crime of abuse, and violence, not of sex. that rape cannot be ignored.

so good for her.

lets wait and see

had to pause it dh on phone

carole malone also just drawn parallel with doncaster boys

matthew wright has just said he doesn't think that teh boys didn't want to be attacked

and that the girl might have been enjoying herself

My boys don't know about rape. They are eight and seven.

your boys are not the ones in this case posie

callers saying boys not guilty, girl was willing participant

where do they get that from?

woman saying that it is the case that children attacking other children should be dealt with by the parents

It is pretty grim that even after a gulity verdict some people are still saying 'oh the girl exaggerated'. From what I have read this does sound like a premeditated attack, not a game.
THis doesn't stop me feeling some pity for the perpetrators, much, much more than I would feel for adults or even adolescents who committed such a crime. They probably come from abusive or at least psychologically neglectful backgrounds and now their lives are blighted forever.
It's to be hped that the girl, now vindicated by the court, can be helped to heal in such a way that this attack doesn't become the defining factor in her life.

There does seem to be double standards at play. When at work, I specialised in abuse cases. Countless times I've seen it accepted that girls as young as ten or eleven led the defendant on, and was in some way to blame for what then followed.

The worst case I've been involved in was when a headmistress who wrote complaining that a case was being pursued against a male teaching assistant. She claimed the victim in question was sexually provocative in her behaviour, and was quite capable of lying about such matters. The little girl was six. And then we found the images on his computer.

I have no precise knowledge of the facts of the recent case. But then neither do the majority of people commenting on this case.

The fact remains that people are willing to attribute sexuality at a young age to girls, even going as far as imputing an element of sexual ensnarement. And yet boys are innocents unfairly accused.

I thought that we had got away from this sort of idea after that scandal years ago where the judge said teh girl was "no angel".

I am utterly depressed that attitudes like this still abound. The evidence is all around us though, isn't it.

I'd like to know about the boys parents.

They're a product of the kind of parenting they've received. For sure there will be some form of neglect, trauma or exposure to sexualized behavours.

Kids that are brought up in loving homes know right from wrong.

The boys migth have been exposed to those things outside of the home.

Blaming the parents is an easy way out, not having to look at anything too closely.

For all we know the boys have been abused by someone they are in contact with outside the home, a scout person, friend on teh family, teacher, who knows.
No-one knows.
Blaming the parents is too knee-jerk simplistic. It's a distancing mechanism. "this could never happen to me".

We don't know anything "for sure".

Not saying those things are likey.

Just that we don't know.

what was the headmistresses response when the pictures weee found on the computer?

She was devastated, and ended up taking time off and receiving counselling.

I initially experienced a sick sense of triumph. Her letter was full of vitriol particularly against the investigating officer. But on reflection I do feel sorry for her. Her belief in her own judgement was completely destroyed. And the offender was an absolutely charmer - pillar of the community, salt of the earth type.

Its not just wayward judges who attribute sexual sophistication to very young girls - its the whole of society. People just take half a story and believe what they want to believe.