Relive your rape or go to jail

Posted by Deanna Zandt at 9:34 AM on March 1, 2006.

UPDATE: From Broadsheet -- the judge has ruled that the woman does not have to view the videotape.

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This just in from Feministing: a young woman is facing contempt of court charges for not being willing to view the videotape of her rape on the stand and answer questions about it. The Chicago Tribune reports:

The woman answered questions from prosecution and defense attorneys for about an hour. But when Missbrenner's attorney, Patrick Campanelli, placed a video monitor in front of her and said he was going to play segments of the 20-minute videotape as he questioned her, she stated emphatically "I don't want to see it."

After the judge warned the woman that she was expected to testify Wednesday, Campanelli quickly asked that the criminal case against Missbrenner be dismissed.

"Your honor, my client has a constitutional right to confrontation of a witness," he said.

Assistant State's Atty. Michael Deno argued against dismissal. "This witness has testified to every other question, and she has testified that she doesn't have any recollection or memory of the videotape incident at all," he said.

UPDATE: Evan has more on the legal implications in PEEK.


Outraged? Call the Cook County court and let them know:



Cook County Court
District 5- Bridgeview
10220 South 76th Avenue
Bridgeview, IL 60455
Telephone 708-974-6500
FAX 708-974-6384
TDD 708-974-6550



Office of the Chief Judge
Richard J. Daley Center
50 W. Washington, Suite 2600
Chicago, IL 60602
Telephone 312-603-6000
FAX 312-603-5366
TDD 312-603-6673
Director: Judge Timothy Evans, Chief Judge



General email address for the Cook County court system: cookcountycourt@chi.syn.net



UPDATE: Shakespeare's Sister has contact info for the Trib:

And if you’d like to send a comment to the Chicago Tribune’s Public Editor, go here. For a Letter to the Editor, go here. Email the author of the article, who saw fit to mention a rape where the victim recanted by clicking here.

Deanna Zandt is a contributing editor at AlterNet.