The following contains sensitive material. If you are a rape survivor dealing with PTSD, the following diary may create flashbacks or triggers. Reader discretion is advised.
Think Progress reports Patricia Esparza is being charged with the murder of her alleged rapist -- 19 years after the fact. Even if she did what the authorities say she did, this just goes to show that our politicians and our society have failed women like Esparza. It also shows an insidious double standard.
All the time, rape survivors are constantly told to "get over it." Yet this is an obvious double standard -- some proud member of the Police State obviously didn't get over it when they pursued Esparza for 19 years after her alleged crime took place. The authorities can't have it both ways. Either they should pursue rapists for the rest of their lives as long as there is probable cause and physical evidence that a rape occurred or they should decide that it is not appropriate to charge someone for something 20 years after the fact unless there is no maybe about it and the heinous nature of the crime demands it (such as Nazi war crimes, or racist lynchings back in the 60's for instance). Their choice.
And then there is the flimsy evidence against her, according to Emily Bazelon of Slate:
How much responsibility does Patricia Esparza bear for the death of Gonzalo Ramirez? Does her fear and paralysis excuse her, or should she spend years in prison for failing to save the man who raped her? I’ve read thousands of pages of law enforcement records in this case and spoken to as many of the people involved as I could find. Esparza is not blameless, as her own account makes clear. She missed repeated chances to go to the police and tell the truth, including after she saw Ramirez hanging by those chains in the hours before he was killed. But I see no evidence in the record—none at all, from any other suspects or witnesses—that she intended his murder or helped plan it. And yet: Esparza is facing life in prison.
And another aspect of miscarriage of justice in this case was the fact that the police lied to Esparza in an effort to entice her back to this country so they could arrest her. From Think Progress:
In 2010, she received emails from detectives in which they wrote in bold letters that she was “NOT A SUSPECT,” and said they would like some help with new leads. Her lawyer advised her not to cooperate. And her refusal to talk to police was later cited by the officer who issued a warrant for her arrest.
The fact that rape survivors are still being advised not to cooperate with the police in this present day shows that there is still a pervasive rape culture in this country. Boys are taught to be boys and bedding someone is seen as glorious and manly regardless of consent. If something goes wrong, well, certain members of the California police see the man as the real victim regardless of the actual facts and circumstances of the case. This, after all, is the same state where a police officer was acquitted for murdering a homeless man in a sham trial in which the jury took less than an hour, meaning they had already made up their minds in advance. This, after all, is the same state in which several police officers were acquitted for the beating of Rodney King. This problem of power and patriarchy is a recurring problem in California.
Our young people should be taught that sex is something that's given to you, not something you take. It requires commitment, mutual respect, and the ability to take no for an answer. Our prosecutors and law enforcement officers should be properly trained to investigate rape so that the trial doesn't come down to a he said/she said, he raped me/it was consensual circus. And we should legalize hemp, pot, gambling, and prostitution and end imprisonment for non-violent offenses so that our law enforcement and our prosecutors can devote more resources to prosecuting real crimes such as rape.
There were two people who could have helped Esparza, but who did not do so. As difficult as it may be, we have to be our brothers' and sisters' keepers. We have to let them talk about their experiences as much as possible and then go with them when they go to make a police report when something like this happens, even if it upends our day and even if it means we have to testify in court.
Finally, there is something about this case that does not pass the smell test. For a case to be open for this long, it suggests that someone in a position of power was pulling the strings to keep the case open long after most such cases like this are closed by the police.