The woman who is accusing two police officers of raping her remained calm and confident during her eight-hour testimony, even going on the attack. http://nyti.ms/gHQc2S
This case seems to be her word agaisnt the officers word. Depending on the amount of alcohol how can she know for certain that she wasn't leading them on or if wasn't concentual. In this case I would side with the officers, not because I'm a man and don't respect women but because she seems to be putting on show.
When substances like alcohol and drugs are put into a situation, I think "believing" and "knowing" becomes very subjective. She says she knew she was raped and that it was by the cops. I think at one time or another we have all been mistaken while under some sort of influence, so how can she be so sure of this point? I'd agree with the previous statement, she may have agreed to it at the time...or she may not have and it was rape. She said that in that situation you don't know what to do so instead just tell your facebook friends that you've been raped but your ok? What are the motives to that? In that regard, it sounds a bit hoax-y.
This is a sticky case of possible rape. It is hard to know if the women who was clearly drunk during the possible rape was truly remembering everything clearly or taking things out of proportion in order to get money. Although since she was clearly drunk it could be possible that the cop took advantage of that knowing that she wouldn't remember as clearly. I think they need further evidence to decide the truth in this case because by reading the article my opinion could go either way.
Well, I had a really detailed comment written out, but it somehow disappeared when I clicked post. So here's the basics.
Based on additional evidence from other articles, I cannot help but side with the victim. On a secret tape from a sting operation set up by the prosecution, Officer Moreno sounds like he was trying to convince the woman that he had acted appropriately. “Anything else that happened, anything that you remembered happened, it wasn’t done intentionally, it wasn’t done to hurt you or anything like that... I just got caught up. I’m not a bad man, you know?" This sounds to me like he was trying to convince the woman that he was not at fault for his actions.
Surveillance footage also shows the officers entering the woman's apartment 4 times that night... I'm not sure what reason they would've had for returning that many times.
My biggest issue with this case is that an ON-DUTY police officer had sex with a civilian. (a) This is inappropriate conduct by someone who is pledged to "protect and serve" the community. Even if she was consenting, this behavior was highly unprofessional, and gives a bad perception of law enforcement. (b) The woman may or may not have appeared to be consensual. But regardless, a person who is obviously "blackout drunk" is not able to make rational decisions, and a police officer should have realized this. If a person's cognizance of a situation is in question, the only rational decision is for the other party to remove him or herself from the situation, before boundaries are (unwittingly or not) overstepped and someone is hurt. Officer Moreno should not have allowed himself to have been placed in this situation, and the fact that he admitted to having sex with her is deserving of criticism, regardless of whether the victim "consented" in the moment.
I agree with Kimberly on all her points. The fact that an on-duty officer is having sex with a civilian is ridiculous. The officer could have missed a call in their area due to the sex that he was having. Someone could have been in a situation that needed immediate response from the officer. This stupidity on his part could have caused someone their life. The second point that Kimberly made was the fact that you could not possibly take a drunk person's decisions as rational. A seriously drunk individual has no rational thought. The officer, being in a position of power was able to take advantage of the situation.
After reading this article, I'm absolutely going to side with the victim. The one point that bothers me is the fact that they are trying to prove that her story has inconsistencies. Obviously, the story is going to be a little broken up if she was too drunk to even get from a taxi to her apartment. And if someone is too drunk to walk, then obviously they are too drunk to consent. The officer had sex with someone under the influence while on duty, so I'd say a verdict should be easy to come by.
I take a lot of issues with a comment on this post. Instead of ranting about it here, I think I'll write my third paper about this article. Get ready for it, Dr. Cate!
I agree with what is being said. I am not sure which side to take, particularly, but I am VERY sure that a cop and civilian should nto have been engaging in those activities when the cop was on duty. I also think that substances, like alcohol, could unfortunately work against the girl's case. Being under the influence is not a free invitation for someone to engage in sexual activity. Unfortunately, it is the girl's word against the cops. How reliable is one's "word" and recollection?
I also agree with the points that Kimberly pointed out. First of all, a police officer that is on duty should not be having sex with civilians. Second, the fact that the poilice officers were called to her apartment because she could not get out of the cab should be the deciding factor in this case. Obviously this woman was too intoxicated to get out of a car and walk, she clearly could not consent to having sex with one of the officers. Even if there were videos of the woman talking to the officers, it is not clear what she was saying. She could have been mumbling words that didn't make sense. This video is useless in this case because it can't prove what she was actually saying. Like stated above, the fact that an officer had sex with a civilian on duty is wrong, and the fact that she was too drunk to get out of her cab should have a huge role in this case and this woman should be respected and should get some kind of justice.
there may be inconsistencies to this woman's story but there was alcohol involved so to be honest there are bound to be inconsistencies. alcohol disturbes perception and alters memory. there are two police officers being accused of this rape. two men, one drunk woman.... just that set up alone raises a red flag; i don't care if the men are cops. cops are human too and can be just as crooked as some of the people they arrest.
Though alcohol alters perception, I would imagine that being raped would still be cognitively recognized. little details like time are not pertinent to the mind when rape, a violation of the body, has just occured. The cognitive focus is on the body, adaptation to the situation and in some cases, the onset of shock to the situation.
The issue of alcohol does make this situation slightly more difficult to interpret. However, there are certain things that should never happen. Police officers never should have sex with anyone while they are on duty, regardless of whether she is intoxicated. Also I agree that intoxication makes it difficult to discern what really happened as it confuses the memory. However, intoxication is never an excuse for having intercourse with an unwilling participant simply because they didn't say no.
I am shocked to see that the "two officers were aquitted of the charges. Is is deeply disconcerting to think that woman was considered too drunk to provide credible details, but sober enough to agree to consensual sex.
This case seems to be her word agaisnt the officers word. Depending on the amount of alcohol how can she know for certain that she wasn't leading them on or if wasn't concentual.
ReplyDeleteIn this case I would side with the officers, not because I'm a man and don't respect women but because she seems to be putting on show.
When substances like alcohol and drugs are put into a situation, I think "believing" and "knowing" becomes very subjective. She says she knew she was raped and that it was by the cops. I think at one time or another we have all been mistaken while under some sort of influence, so how can she be so sure of this point? I'd agree with the previous statement, she may have agreed to it at the time...or she may not have and it was rape. She said that in that situation you don't know what to do so instead just tell your facebook friends that you've been raped but your ok? What are the motives to that? In that regard, it sounds a bit hoax-y.
ReplyDeleteThis is a sticky case of possible rape. It is hard to know if the women who was clearly drunk during the possible rape was truly remembering everything clearly or taking things out of proportion in order to get money. Although since she was clearly drunk it could be possible that the cop took advantage of that knowing that she wouldn't remember as clearly. I think they need further evidence to decide the truth in this case because by reading the article my opinion could go either way.
ReplyDeleteWell, I had a really detailed comment written out, but it somehow disappeared when I clicked post. So here's the basics.
ReplyDeleteBased on additional evidence from other articles, I cannot help but side with the victim. On a secret tape from a sting operation set up by the prosecution, Officer Moreno sounds like he was trying to convince the woman that he had acted appropriately. “Anything else that happened, anything that you remembered happened, it wasn’t done intentionally, it wasn’t done to hurt you or anything like that... I just got caught up. I’m not a bad man, you know?" This sounds to me like he was trying to convince the woman that he was not at fault for his actions.
Surveillance footage also shows the officers entering the woman's apartment 4 times that night... I'm not sure what reason they would've had for returning that many times.
My biggest issue with this case is that an ON-DUTY police officer had sex with a civilian. (a) This is inappropriate conduct by someone who is pledged to "protect and serve" the community. Even if she was consenting, this behavior was highly unprofessional, and gives a bad perception of law enforcement. (b) The woman may or may not have appeared to be consensual. But regardless, a person who is obviously "blackout drunk" is not able to make rational decisions, and a police officer should have realized this. If a person's cognizance of a situation is in question, the only rational decision is for the other party to remove him or herself from the situation, before boundaries are (unwittingly or not) overstepped and someone is hurt. Officer Moreno should not have allowed himself to have been placed in this situation, and the fact that he admitted to having sex with her is deserving of criticism, regardless of whether the victim "consented" in the moment.
I agree with Kimberly on all her points. The fact that an on-duty officer is having sex with a civilian is ridiculous. The officer could have missed a call in their area due to the sex that he was having. Someone could have been in a situation that needed immediate response from the officer. This stupidity on his part could have caused someone their life. The second point that Kimberly made was the fact that you could not possibly take a drunk person's decisions as rational. A seriously drunk individual has no rational thought. The officer, being in a position of power was able to take advantage of the situation.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this article, I'm absolutely going to side with the victim. The one point that bothers me is the fact that they are trying to prove that her story has inconsistencies. Obviously, the story is going to be a little broken up if she was too drunk to even get from a taxi to her apartment. And if someone is too drunk to walk, then obviously they are too drunk to consent. The officer had sex with someone under the influence while on duty, so I'd say a verdict should be easy to come by.
ReplyDeleteI take a lot of issues with a comment on this post. Instead of ranting about it here, I think I'll write my third paper about this article. Get ready for it, Dr. Cate!
ReplyDeleteI agree with what is being said. I am not sure which side to take, particularly, but I am VERY sure that a cop and civilian should nto have been engaging in those activities when the cop was on duty. I also think that substances, like alcohol, could unfortunately work against the girl's case. Being under the influence is not a free invitation for someone to engage in sexual activity. Unfortunately, it is the girl's word against the cops. How reliable is one's "word" and recollection?
ReplyDeleteI also agree with the points that Kimberly pointed out. First of all, a police officer that is on duty should not be having sex with civilians. Second, the fact that the poilice officers were called to her apartment because she could not get out of the cab should be the deciding factor in this case. Obviously this woman was too intoxicated to get out of a car and walk, she clearly could not consent to having sex with one of the officers. Even if there were videos of the woman talking to the officers, it is not clear what she was saying. She could have been mumbling words that didn't make sense. This video is useless in this case because it can't prove what she was actually saying. Like stated above, the fact that an officer had sex with a civilian on duty is wrong, and the fact that she was too drunk to get out of her cab should have a huge role in this case and this woman should be respected and should get some kind of justice.
ReplyDeletethere may be inconsistencies to this woman's story but there was alcohol involved so to be honest there are bound to be inconsistencies. alcohol disturbes perception and alters memory. there are two police officers being accused of this rape. two men, one drunk woman.... just that set up alone raises a red flag; i don't care if the men are cops. cops are human too and can be just as crooked as some of the people they arrest.
ReplyDeleteThough alcohol alters perception, I would imagine that being raped would still be cognitively recognized. little details like time are not pertinent to the mind when rape, a violation of the body, has just occured. The cognitive focus is on the body, adaptation to the situation and in some cases, the onset of shock to the situation.
The issue of alcohol does make this situation slightly more difficult to interpret. However, there are certain things that should never happen. Police officers never should have sex with anyone while they are on duty, regardless of whether she is intoxicated. Also I agree that intoxication makes it difficult to discern what really happened as it confuses the memory. However, intoxication is never an excuse for having intercourse with an unwilling participant simply because they didn't say no.
ReplyDeleteI am shocked to see that the "two officers were aquitted of the charges. Is is deeply disconcerting to think that woman was considered too drunk to provide credible details, but sober enough to agree to consensual sex.
ReplyDeleteLindsay