Criminal Justice Report: Prosecution Challenges in Rape Cases Analysis

This report delves into the complexities of prosecuting rape and statutory rape cases, examining the challenges faced by the legal system. It analyzes two articles that highlight the difficulties in securing convictions, including issues related to DNA evidence, victim testimony, and the passage of time. The first case involves a 22-year-old rape case where DNA evidence linked the suspect, but insufficient evidence led to no charges. The second case involves a conviction achieved almost 40 years after the crime. The report discusses the impact of factors like victim recall, the impact of DNA evidence, and the challenges of cold cases on prosecution outcomes, referencing legal and ethical considerations.

Running head: CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Criminal Justice
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Authors Note

1CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Many scholars are of the view that rape and statutory crimes are very challenging for the
purpose of prosecution. In this paper, to find out the reliability of the above-mentioned
statement, two articles will be reviewed where the county or state is presently prosecuting a
defendant for committing rape or statutory rape.
Link 1: https://www.news-press.com/story/news/2017/12/27/deputies-arrest-fort-myers-man-
after-his-dna-linked-22-year-old-rape/985435001/
In the first article reviewed by me, a man of Fort Myres was arrested in December 2017
for committing a shocking rape which happened 22 years ago. The officers of the police
department arrived at his home and asked for a swab of his DNA to be matched with DNA
obtained years ago. The man afterwards arrested by the police for committing rape but no
charges have been filed against him with the office of State Attorney. It was not until his court
date that he learned that no charges had been brought due to a lack of sufficient evidence and
cooperation with the victims. The office of the sheriffs was challenged after additional analysis
of the article about backlogging DNA about which they had no knowledge. However, the DNA
was collected before 22 years ago after happening of the incident and in 2016, it was delivered to
the Law Enforcement Department of Florida for examination. As at the time of that incident, the
victim was aged about thirteen only. Therefore, she did not remember the involved person. As
per the news report, the teen has been captured by three people, taking her to a filth road, raping
her and leaving her on the road unclothed ("Fort Myers man arrested in 1995 rape after DNA
links him to crime", 2020). The risk of DNA exposure, which took several years ago, and
survivor claims, can be very tough to prosecute for cold rape cases. The DNA seemed to be a
sort of match in this case, which is how they could get an arrest warrant, yet was checked further
by the Office of State Attorney, which refused to prosecute because of insufficient proof.

2CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Victims can also change their statements and accounts because of their age and their time, which
means that certain particular details are ignored or even forgotten (Sharratt, 2016).
Link 2: https://www.wtvq.com/2019/09/30/rapist-convicted-almost-40-years-crime/
The second reviewed article deals with the case of 1981which involved Donald Berlin,
who entered into the house of 18 years old girl when she was sleeping and threatened her if she
tried to resist him. He pushed her down to the floor, raped her and left. After the happening of
the incident, victim girl called the police immediately and went to the hospital for examining the
sexual assault. The prosecutors were able to obtain the DNA samples from the incident through
the New York County District Attorney's Office Sexual Assault Kit Backlog Elimination
Program. Numerous authors are of the view that these sort of crimes are not possible to prosecute
effectively ("Rapist sentenced almost 40 years after the crime - ABC 36 News", 2020). Based on
the testimony of a victim alone, it is almost impossible to get a verdict. Also, juries are generally
unsympathetic when a victim drinks heavily or takes drugs (Pearlstein, 2010). Even, the Bible
also states that always take a stand for those individuals who are unable to raise their voice
against injustice. Always raise the voice for poor and helpless individuals in order to get justice
for them.

3CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Reference
Fort Myers man arrested in 1995 rape after DNA links him to crime. (2020). Retrieved 22
February 2020, from https://www.news-press.com/story/news/2017/12/27/deputies-
arrest-fort-myers-man-after-his-dna-linked-22-year-old-rape/985435001/
Pearlstein, L. (2010). Walking the tightrope of statutory rape law: Using international legal
standards to serve the best interests of juvenile offenders and victims. Am. Crim. L.
Rev., 47, 109.
Rapist sentenced almost 40 years after the crime - ABC 36 News. (2020). Retrieved 22 February
2020, from https://www.wtvq.com/2019/09/30/rapist-convicted-almost-40-years-crime/
Sharratt, S. (2016). Gender, shame and sexual violence: The voices of witnesses and court
members at war crimes tribunals. Routledge.