Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Law Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Law

The Existing Confidentiality Privileges As Applied To Rape Victims, Bridget M. Mccafferty Jan 1990

The Existing Confidentiality Privileges As Applied To Rape Victims, Bridget M. Mccafferty

Journal of Law and Health

It is evident that when this type of questioning occurs, the victim must overcome the presumption that she is at fault. As it exists, the prosecution of the rapist also results in the prosecution of the victim. However, it is undeniable that the defendant in a rape case is presumed innocent until a judicial determination states otherwise. A dilemma arises when the court attempts to balance the victim's right to bring the accused to trial and the defendant's right to prove his innocence. Currently, the judicial system favors the presumption of the defendant's innocence, presupposing that the victim has falsely …


Equality Theory, Marital Rape, And The Promise Of The Fourteenth Amendment, Robin West Jan 1990

Equality Theory, Marital Rape, And The Promise Of The Fourteenth Amendment, Robin West

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

During the 1980s a handful of state judges either held or opined in dicta what must be incontrovertible to the feminist community, as well as to most progressive legal advocates and academics: the so-called marital rape exemption, whether statutory or common law in origin, constitutes a denial of a married woman's constitutional right to equal protection under the law. Indeed, a more obvious denial of equal protection is difficult to imagine: the marital rape exemption denies married women protection against violent crime solely on the basis of gender and marital status. What possibly could be less rational than a statute …