Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1999-06-16, Page 6ffi 6 Exeter Tirnes–Advocate Ac Editorial&Opinion Wednesday, June 16, 1999 400"4. rTIMES-ADvOCATE PUBLICATIONS MAIL REGISTRATION NUMBER 07511 jim Beckett Publisher and - Editor Don Smith Deb Lord • General Manager Production Manager Published by J;W. Eedy Publications Limited 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850 Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6 • (519) 235-1331 ja 0 ne of the more chilling stories to come out of an Ontario court room in recent weeks involved the conviction and sentencing of a man for raping a girl less than half his age. After the man got the girl intoxicated on drugs and alcohol, he bound and -gagged her, then raped her. The court's penalty for what was described as the "violent sexual assault" of the 15 -year-old, was a year in jail followed by two years proba- tion. The crime here is not so much what the man did to the girl, but what the courts did in response. The defence argued for a sentence which did. not involve jail time, because the girl suffered no "physical or emotional trauma", from the attack, and had, in fact, made sexual advances toward the man earlier in the evening. Anyone who has sat in a court room for any length of time knows there are .three standard arguments for defence against a rape charge - there was a rape, but the accused did not do it; the accused did it, but with the victim's consent; or everyone was drunk and no one knows who did what. Apparently, the defence went for arguments "B" and "C„ Intoxication may not be "a legal defence- against a rape charge, but it has proved to be a successful. way to attack the credibility of the victim. The defence stayed with the tried and true by stating the "proof" sex was consentual was the;. absence of physical injury. In other words, she did not end up with a broken jaw and cracked ribs trying to fight him off. How could she? She was drugged, intoxicated and tied up. He even made sure she could not call for help. And she was only 15 years old. It is unbelievable to think anyone would consid- er this an act betweefi two consenting adults. In a matter of a couple of decades, the law regarding rape has 'changed. Most of us remem- ber a time when rape was the only form of assault in which the onus of proof was on the victim. Rape became a notoriously under -reported crime because the courts put the victim on trial, not the accused rapist. Did she have a prior rela- tionship with the attacker? Was she of previously chaste character? Was she properly dressed (in crinolines)? Was she in the wrong part of town? Was she sober? Even a hint of some past indiscre- tion was enough to get the case thrown out of court. The so-called rape shield law protected victims from having their pasts dragged through the courts. It was a step in the right direction. But we have gone two steps back, with the courts allow- ing defence lawyers to access medical records of victims, including psychiatric reports. By the -laws of this nation, the only valid ques- tion now is supposed to be whether or not the vic- tim said no. But the facts of this case make it clear the character of the victim remains a key consideration. One cannot help wondering what the sentence might have been if the attacker's purpose had been to rob the victim of cash rather than human dignity. An adult man plies a young teenager with quantities of liquor and drugs, then ties up, gags, and physically assaults the victim... Would the defence lawyer have even attempted to argue for a sentence which did not include jail? Would the courts have decided a year in jail is an appropriate -pAValtyriTne suspects the answer to both questions would have been "no". Exeter and Stephen OK, listen, it's too hot outside, it's too hot inside and everyone's been in a bad mood this week, including me, so here are a few various observations on life around Exeter. First of all, last week marked public meetings on amalgamation in Exeter and Stephen Township and the two couldn't have been any different. The Exeter meeting was friendly, laid-back, quick and easy. Mayor Ben Hoogenboom even told the audience that before the meeting a resident had told him that she wouldn't be attending the meeting because she trusted council. That was a nice touch, and it summed up the feeling of the meeting well. Exeter residents, it seems, have no serious concerns about amalga- mation with Stephen and Usborne Townships. They're just going to go with the flow, appar- ently. Some Stephen Township residents, though, aren't going down without a fight. Stephen's public meeting, held the night after Exeter's, was the exact opposite : of Exeter's. You've heard of Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities? Well, last week Exeter and Stephen were 'A Tale of Two Amalgamating Municipalities', with Stephen residents coming across as suspicious and angry. Why? Because they think taxes are going to go up after amalgamation and, ,try as he might, township administrator Larry Brown really couldn't convince his testy audience that while some portions of taxes may rise, council expects savings in several areas such as water and sewage. There could also be a suspicion of joining with Exeter, that big, bad metropolis with the weird -looking squir- rels. While each of the three amalgamation partners has a study in contrasts had equal say on the organization conittee; 1tlie public may have the impression that Exeter is in charge because all of the. Meetings have been held gat the ' Exeter council chambers. The decision of where to hold the meetings was hotly debated at the group's first meeting and it probably would have been better to rotate the meetings between .the municipalities. Too late now, though. At any rate, here's a suggestion to some of those Stephen residents who were so hot under the collar last week. First, read up on what's going on. Many of . the questions asked wouldn't have been asked if these people had been attending the amalgamation meetings or read - AND ANOTHER ing the paper. Second, chill out — amalgama- THING tion won't hurt that much, your lives won't change, the sun will still rise in the east (I think) and the Toronto Maple Leafs still won't win the Stanley Cup. Hospital improvements Kudos to the South Huron Hospital, which lately has been getting its act together after a controversial year ,featuring several threats of the emergency room closing (including a few actual closures). . After scoring some funding from the government to increase the pay of doctors working in the ER, the hospi- tal has recently hired a second physiotherapist, which will decrease a long waiting list and lighten the staff workload. The hospital has also hired a nurse practi- tioner, which should also help with the doctor shortage. So finally there's some good news about the hospital. The bottom line, though, is that Exeter needs at least two additional doctors and we shouldn't rest on our lau- rels until we've achieved that goal. SCOTT NIXON About the Times -Advocate Address & Office Hours Times -Advocate, 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850, Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6. Our office is open Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm. Contact Us By Phone or Fax Classified ad & subscription sales ....(519) 235-1331 24-hour automated attendant (519) 235-1336 Fax number for all departments (519) 235-0766 Subscription Rates One year rate for addresses in Canada: $35+GST Two year rate for addresses in Canada: $63+GST One year rate for addresses outside Canada: $102 Call (519) 235-1331 to order a subscription. Classified Rates Word ads: $9.00 for 20 words, 15t for each additional word+ GST. Notices (births, deaths, announcements, coming_ events, memoriams, cards of thanks): $11.00 + GST for up to 30 words, 10t for each additional word. All ads must be pre -paid. The classified ad deadline is Monday at 10 a.m.L+ Display Advertising To place a display ad, (519) 235-1331 weekdays 8:30 to 5 p.m. or evenings (519) 235-1336 (leave message) or toll-free at 1-888-270-1602. Deadline: Friday 4 E-mail Us TA e-mail addresses consist of the person's first initial and last name followed bar @ta.eedy.com. For example, Jim Beckett's e-mail address is <jbeck- ett@ta.eedy.com> Our general e-mail address is edi- tor@South Huron.com.