Why are people so defensive towards alleged rapists?

[PinkyofPie]

If you're charged with a crime that goes to court, unless there's a reason to retain anonymity (such as it involves your child therefore naming you effectively names them) the press can name you if they wish to do so. Be it burglary, assault, theft or rape.

So why, every time a rapist is on trial, do people hop about saying "innocent until proven guilty" "they shouldn't be named they're tarred for life now" etc. But literally NO other crime.

A few days ago my local paper posted a picture on their FB newsfeed of 2 men on trial accused of raping a 18yo in the park. The above comments were there and even calls to "name and shame" the victim and also "will she get sentenced if they're found not guilty". Perhaps because "not guilty" does not mean innocent and if the law worked that way even fewer women would report rape than there is now

One of the men accused also posted mocking both the trial and people who actually had sensible comments. I looked at his profile, which is public, and there's lots of people saying "good luck mate" for today (verdict) and memes about liars getting their comeuppance.

Today both men were unanimously found guilty by the jury in just 7 hours.

No comments so far on the post about their guilt.

Can anyone offer an explanation as to why people take this attitude with rape, and only rape? The poor survivor has had to read all that sympathy for them

Why on earth does wishing to protect an accused rapist's anonymity mean I would be less concerned about seeing justice done?

I'm going to copy and paste what I said on another thread about this because I can't be bothered to type it all out again:

There is a very good reason why people accused of rape aren't given anonymity. It's so other victims have a chance to come forward which in turn helps to secure a conviction.

Remember John Worboys? If he was allowed to remain anonymous then there is a good chance he wouldn't have been convicted and would still be out there raping women.

I know that the general opinion is that people accused of rape should be given anonymity but do people not understand what will happen if they get given anonymity? Or do they simply not care?

Rape is a tough crime to prove and prosecute. A lot of the time convictions only happen because more victims have come forward after the accused has been named. If more than one women who have no connection to each other have said that x has raped them then it makes a conviction more likely than it is if it's just one woman saying that he raped her.

Again, remember John Worboys? If he was allowed anonymity then there's a good chance he would still be out there raping women.

If you give them anonymity then there's a very good chance that the already very low rape conviction rate will fall even further.

I also worry that people's perceptions of false accusations will change for the worse if suspects get given anonymity and conviction rates.

Like I've already said, there is already a widespread belief that false rape accusations are common and how allowing suspects anonymity just enforces that belief as it singles it out as a special kind of crime and that women routinely lie about being raped.

However I have also come across some people who take the "false accusations are common" train of thought even further and insist that there is an epidemic of innocent men being jailed for a rape he didn't commit. The fact that only 6% of reported rapes end in a conviction doesn't even seem to sway them - nope they will still insist that there are lots who have been wrongly jailed.

So if conviction rates drop because you aren't allowed to name suspects any more then I fear those people will then turn around and say "see? I told you that innocent men were put in prison for a crime he didn't commit! The conviction rates now dropping proves that!"

Currently only around 6% of reported rapes end in a conviction. Do people honestly believe that the other 94% now have their lives ruined, regardless of whether they were falsely accused or not?

Considering that even convicted rapist don't necessarily have their lives ruined when they are jailed - you will still see people defending them and questioning whether they were really guilty - there is simply no way that I buy that men who are accused have their lives ruined in the epidemic numbers that people claim they do.

You know, that's the second time that women on this thread have been told that we can't discuss this topic without too much "emotion".

So I'll try and keep the emotion out of this, lest I become too hysterical and over-wrought and my boobs fall off, or whatever happens when women get Too Emotional. Here goes: it is dismissive, lazy and plain sexist to come to a feminist board and tell women that getting worked up about rape just proves we can't be objective about it.

Thinking that women need to calm down about rape is a thought very much best kept to yourselves, gentlemen.

Those were all from various posts on the same thread btw. So sorry if I repeat some points or if it doesn't flow together well

I have seen it for myself - it's not just my opinion

False allegations ruin lives end of

Evidence please?

far too often nothing is done about them

Yet when I google "woman jailed for making false rape claim" I am given pages of hits of...wait for it...women being jailed for making false rape accusations. Funny that

Yet despite this people will still insist that nothing ever gets done about them . Bizarre.

Evidence newstart or it very much is anecdotal or your opinion.

This is for you NewStart -

[]www.google.co.uk/#q=woman+jailed+for+false+rape+accusation]]

www.google.co.uk/#q=woman+jailed+for+false+rape+claim

www.google.co.uk/#q=woman+jailed+for+false+rape+claim&start=10

Just a couple of pages to get you started.

Now what were you saying about false accusers not being punished...?

Oops, sorry, my first link went wrong

www.google.co.uk/#q=woman+jailed+for+false+rape+accusation

Why when the person has suffered enough would I link you all to it? I'm not going to drag it back into the open for the vultures ffs.

Take it as you wish, your opinions are set so there's really very little point.

There's very little point in you posting on this thread then is there?

End of.

NewStart what criteria are you using to conclude if a rape accusation is false?

You have classed the case where the boy killed himself as a false accusation even though that was never proven to be a false accusation.

If a woman makes an allegation but then withdraws it do you class that as a false accusation? What about if charges are dropped before it gets to court or if it gets to court but he is found not guilty? Would you class those as false accusations?

Because none of them = false accusation.

I answered the question of the OP, gave my opinion - so yes, that was point of me posting on this thread

NewStart how do you know that the person in question was falsely accused?

Was it proven without a doubt that it was false? Or is it simply a case of being perceived to have been false because he wasn't convicted or this happened or that never happened, etc?

They're only men aren't they, they're not entitled to any rights nowadays. If a woman says it it must be true, couldn't possibly have made it up could she

Yeah, the 85,000 women raped every year and hardly any convictions. They're all making it up, aren't they?

Someone's bitter...

They're only men aren't they, they're not entitled to any rights nowadays. If a woman says it it must be true, couldn't possibly have made it up could she

Yes because that is clearly how it works isn't it?

I'm not denying the real victims, it's a horrendous thing to go through.

Of course they're all making it up Lilac.

Women are liars and we must not be trusted. We're constantly looking for ways to get poor innocent men into trouble and sent to prison for crimes he didn't commit.

The easiest way for us to do that is to tell everyone he raped us and of course everyone will automatically believe us and shun him. Nobody will accuse us of lying, of being sluts or slags and nobody will try to blame us.

They will all take our side and go after the man's blood.

Because obviously that is how it works.

Right.

I think men in general are very unconfortable with the idea that another man can be found guilty of rape, esp when that person is not the 'crazy guy that would come and kill you down a dark alley'.

The myth that rapes only happen like this, a stranger attacking a lone woman in a dark place, also mean that when a rape happens out in the open, with a 'normal' guy being accused, it is a threat for ALL men. Because it says that it's not just crazy men who rape but that 'normal' men can do that too.
So, of course, the first reaction is to assume that it can NOT possibly happen and it's essential to remember he is still innocent (until proven guilty), that we shouldn't name them because look at all the damage it will cause etc etc. Full denial that anything like this can ever happen all the way.

I think it's a bit like paedophilia. For a long time, it was burried under the carpet until such rapes, even historical, slowly came out in the open and have been acknowledged and publicized. To the point where now, a man can not stay with a child he doesn't know on his own wo being accused of potential peadophilia.
Now imagine that many more convictions are brought up about rape, rape of women done by 'decent men' and if the following reaction was ther same? Would that mean that every man would then be assumed to be a potential rapist? Guilty until proven innocent? That's a big risk to take that. Much better to bang on about how false accusations destroy lives.
--That's wo talking about the fact that false allegations are not the same as someone found not guilty, which can mean too that there wasn't enough proof rather than it has been proven the person is innocent.

Again, for people recently joining, who don't want to rtft (from the Scottish police)

Indeed Toads.

And once he's found guilty (as they always are, because they all get charged and all the cases go to court and the women are never questioned about their sexual history) he will get a deserving sentence, rather than a few months, and not one of his friends or family will hound the victim online and force her to change her identity and move house several times.

Because rape cases always go in the favour of the victim, don't they?

Isn't that exactly how it works?

It must be nice living in your black and white world. Having seen this personally from both sides of the coin it's not that simple.

Some men are evil and some women can be vindictive bitches - there's bad on either side. Lives shouldn't be ruined for either.

If there are any men reading this then please stay away from us women.

We're all evil bitches out to get you and trust me, we will get you.

We will accuse you of all kinds of things just to hurt you and because we are women everyone will take our side because society hates men.

They never should have let us out of the kitchen.

Yes, some men are evil and some women are vindictive bitches. My SIL is a horrible woman to my brother and her own daughter. Not so black and white.

However, there are 85,000 rapes in the UK each year. How many false allegations are there?

There's no comparison. Not by a long shot.

And as you won't share any details I'm happy to assume you've just got an agenda.

It must be nice living in your black and white world.

Some men are evil and some women can be vindictive bitches - there's bad on either side.

Are you actually reading the same thread as us NewStart?

What you have said there has no relevance to anything anyone has said.