What are rape shield
laws?
Rape shield laws are statutes or court rules that limit the
introduction of evidence about a victim's sexual history, reputation or past
conduct. Every state and theDistrict of
Columbia has a rape shield law
that applies in criminal cases; only a few extend such laws to civil
cases. Many of these laws were adopted in the 1970s to combat the practice of
discrediting victims by introducing irrelevant information about their
chastity.
What do rape shield laws
do?
Rape shield laws commonly bar the introduction of opinion
and reputation evidence about the sexual history of the victim. They also
typically provide that evidence of specific sexual conduct of the victim is
presumed irrelevant unless it is direct evidence of the source of injury, semen,
pregnancy, or disease that may be at issue in the case, or relates to specific
sexual conduct with the defendant. Some rape shield laws also prohibit evidence of
the victim's manner of dress.
Eleven state rape shield laws have what is
called a "catch-all" exception, which permits a judge to allow the introduction
of any evidence, even that normally barred by a rape shield law, if it is
necessary to introduce that evidence to protect the constitutional rights of the
accused.
Several rape shield laws, including
Colorado
's, allow the judge to determine
whether the evidence in question is relevant and, if so, whether or not the
potential prejudicial impact of the evidence outweighs its
relevance.
Why are rape shield laws important to the criminal
justice
system?
Rape shield laws guard against the introduction of
evidence that is irrelevant to the question of the defendant's guilt or
innocence, but which has the potential to prejudice the jury against the
victim.
Why are rape shield laws important to
victims?
Rape shield laws help to ensure that rape victims are
treated with fairness, dignity and respect during a criminal trial by ensuring
that the victim will not be subject to a public airing of his or her sexual
reputation, past conduct, and other irrelevant
information.
Do rape shield laws increase the chance that victims will
report rape?
Rape shield laws were designed, in
part, to make it more likely for victims to come forward. If rape victims are
likely to have their entire sexual history revealed and examined in court as part of
a rape prosecution, it is likely that such exposure will deter other victims
from reporting rape. Unfortunately, rape shield laws only guard against
the introduction of such evidence during the trial. Because rape shield laws do not
protect victims from pretrial publicity, many victims are still likely to be
deterred from reporting the offense.
Do rape shield laws prevent
rape?
Studies indicate most rapes are committed
by serial offenders. Therefore, anything that can be done to encourage victims
to report the offense and to willingly continue with the prosecution, and to,
therefore, increase the likelihood that guilty offenders will be convicted, will help
ensure that offenders are caught earlier in their careers, decreasing the number
of rapes committed.
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