When I think of Justice, episodes of Law and Order SVU pop into my head. All of the episodes involve a perpetrator, victim, and some sort of justice. A man rapes a teenage girl, he is caught, he goes to Riker's. Justice in this case seems pretty straight forward. I mean, who cares what happens to the guy? He raped an innocent 15 year old girl didn't he? And he will probably do it again if he gets off. By him going to prison, the girl and her family receive justice and he gets what he deserves. Simple.
But what if this story wasn't so simple? What if the 15 year old girl hooks up with guys from her school all the time? What if she stole her older sister's ID so she could get into a club? What if she picked a guy up at the club and they "hooked up" and then afterwards, her parents found out he was 22 and they talked their daughter into pressing charges? If he gets the maximum sentence for rape and is forever labeled a sex offender, is that justice?
What if the man actually does rape the 15 year old girl? He sees her walking down the street, followers her into an alley, and rapes her. But what if he suffers from schizophrenia or any other mental condition and has been off his medication? What if he would have taken his medication but he is homeless and doesn't have access or money to see a doctor to write a prescription? What if he was sexually abused as a child? What if he has flashbacks and paranoid episodes of when he was abused and he was not aware of his actions when he raped the girl? If he gets the maximum sentence for rape and is sent to prison, is that justice?
What if the perpetrator was a woman and she raped a 15 year old boy?
What if the perpetrator was a boy who just turned 18 and the victim was his underage girlfriend who he has been dating for over a year? What if the girl victim originally wanted to have sex and then after got scared claimed it was rape? Do all these different situations deserve the same sort of "justice"?
I know these are just hypothetical situations I am comparing to a TV show, but this sort of thing happens all the time in our society. The same crime is committed but in a million different situations. Is is just to punish all of the offenders the same way because they all committed the same crime? Should society only get justice for the victim, regardless of what the offender receives for punishment, or should society look at what is in the best interest of the offender as well? I believe there should be justice for both parties, but to go off of one set of rules or laws for every crime and situation would not be just for either group.
I feel like these are all things that cause a discord in the judicial system. IDEALLY each case should be looked at differently and all things considered. REALISTICALLY, there is no way to incorporate this because there are soooooooo many cases and so few people who would have the means and patience to figure out each individual situation and serve "justice" accordingly. If only justice was fair in every situation, society would be better off!
ReplyDeleteFirst rape is always wrong, no matter what behavior the victim engaged in prior to the rape. I know you already know this so I am preaching to the choir. But each of these scenarios makes me wonder who failed who and again, what is just?
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you that the details and the context specific to an incident matter in determining what is just in that situation, but since justice is so subjective, I wonder how we can reach a resolution that will please everyone?
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