In this series we are talking about a really difficult subject – child molestation. Don’t worry, we’re not discussing graphic details or anything of that nature. We are simply talking about how Michigan law defines child molestation and the difficulties faced by the defense attorney in challenging these types of accusations in court.
As we discussed in part one, where we looked at exactly what our criminal law describes as ‘child sexual abuse,’ some people believe that molestation does not include sexual penetration of the victim. However, this isn’t true. Molestation can refer to sexual penetration of the victim or the more vague ‘sexual contact’ with the victim’s private parts, either undressed or fully clothed. But as you can image, the latter scenario presents some difficulty when it comes to evidence. In Michigan law, private parts can be something as seemingly harmless as the top of the thigh.
When a person is raped they are sexually penetrated by their attacker. As a result, there is often a transfer of evidence from one body to another. Whether this refers to DNA collected from saliva or semen specimens, pubic hairs, or bodily injury sustained by the victim, there is something for police to point to in court to say that the victim was sexually assaulted. Sexual touching is different.
A child or young teen who claims to have been molested will usually report the incident to a parent, teacher or trusted confidant. From there, CPS and the police are usually notified and an investigation is opened into the allegations. If the child was raped, and the incident took place recently, authorities will attempt to collect evidence in the form of a ‘rape kit.’
But if the allegations involve sexual contact without penetration, there is little to no physical evidence available to back the claim, whether or not it actually happened. At that point, the entire investigation is usually based on one person’s testimony.
In our current culture, there is very little tolerance for what is referred to as ‘victim blaming.’
This stems from the fact that for so long, people ignored children’s claims of sexual assault, or glossed over them as being lies, manipulation or fanciful imaginings. In recent decades however, it has come to the attention of mental health therapists the world over, that instances of child abuse are far more prevalent than was previously believed, and so the pendulum has swung the other way. Now most children are believed. Even when their claims are untrue.
Out of fear of not believing an accuser and allowing a ‘child molester’ to go free, juries often err on the side of caution and convict people accused of the improper touching of a child. The working theory seems to be that it while convicting the wrong person is awful, allowing a child molester to go free to potentially molest countless more victims is worse. For this reason, they are often reluctant to vote in the favor of the accused.
While the American legal system is built on the belief that one is innocent until proven guilty, people accused of child molestation are rarely ‘proven’ guilty. They are often simply accused, and the guilt and fear of the jury results in a conviction. This is a tragedy, because innocent people are imprisoned and their lives and reputations are destroyed, all because a handful of people were too scared to run the risk of not believing a child.
We cannot tell you how many times we have handled molestation cases where the prosecution and police were convinced of someone’s guilt simply because a child made an unsubstantiated claim. A claim that we were late able to prove was entirely false. Or aimed at the wrong person. Or made because they wanted attention or were angry at the person they were accusing. This is why having an experienced defense attorney who’s handled these types of cases before, is invaluable in this type of situation.
Join us next time, when we will be looking at the types of situation where false accusations of molestation most commonly occur and how to avoid becoming a victim of someone else’s lies. We understand that this isn’t a ‘fun’ subject to talk about, but the truth is that this kind of thing happens more often that you would believe, and being prepared is one of the best ways to prevent being falsely accused of molestation. For additional information, go to www.SexCrimeAttorneys.com or call us at 1 866-766-5245.