This is a preview of a training slideshow for judges. It contains only Part 2 of the 4 modules. For more information on the curriculum please contact us directly at www.SudomaConsulting.com

1. Rape and Sexual
Violence:
Judicial Response
A Training Program for Judges
Trainer: Oksana Sudoma
www.SudomaConsulting.com

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PART 1. History of sexuality and crimes
PART 2. Storytelling theory
PART 3. Perpetrator‟s story
PART 4. Victim‟s story
OUTLINE

3. 2. STORYTELLING THEORY

9. • This is how we convert the rape case narrative into a
familiar story filling the “gaps” to craft a “coherent”
story.
• … the big question is…
Why?
Story-based reasoning:

10. Answers are
in the
human
brain:
Story-based reasoning:

11. Brain is a calculator

12. Blind spots & filling-in

13. Blind spots & filling-in

14. Blind spots & filling in

16. • “HUMAN IS A
STORYTELLING
ANIMAL”, says
Michael Gazzaniga,
the discoverer of the
Left Brain Interpreter
and the Nobel Prize
winner.
Left Brain Interpreter

17. NARRATIVE COHERENCE:
Concerns whether the story „hangs together‟;
Structural coherence;
Material coherence (comparing with familiar stories);
Characterological coherence (evaluating the central actors‟
characters in the story to „bad‟ and „good‟ guys).
NARRATIVE FIDELITY:
“Good reasons” – the means by which jurors/judges decide if
the story of a case is accurate, comforting to their sense of
reality.
May include observations whether relevant facts have been
omitted or distorted, whether the connections of facts and
conclusions are reasonable, and whether values implied by the
facts of the case are confirmed by the jurors‟ own experience.
Storytelling theory:

18.  PROSECUTOR’S REASONING:
Ms. B. was charged with knowingly possessing nine stolen
welfare checks. The prosecutor‟s undisputed evidence showed
that six checks, made out to different payees, were given to Ms.
B. by her boyfriend‟s good friend, Scott. Ms. B. deposited the
checks, which supposedly had been endorsed to Scott, into her
account. One check was returned unpaid and her account charged
accordingly, but Scott made good for her loss. He subsequently
deposited three more checks. The prosecutor‟s theory is that Ms.
B. “must have known” that the checks were stolen, but Ms. B.
testified that she did not in fact believe that the checks were
stolen; she believed Scott‟s story that the checks had been given
to him in payment for a debt, and he needed her assistance
because he had no bank account of his own.
Case study

19. In groups, read the case study and evaluate:
 narrative coherence and
 narrative fidelity
Case study

20.  EXPERT WITNESS’ TESTIMONY
An expert character witness – a psychiatrist – testified that Ms. B’s
personality is characterized by an unusually high degree of
passivity and dependency. These conclusions are supported by the
psychiatrist‟s recounting relevant portions of Ms. B‟s life history,
interviews, tests, and other data collected during her evaluation.
Because Ms. B. is dependent on others to satisfy her emotional needs,
the psychiatrist opined, she is compliant and generally avoids
conflicts that threaten the stability of her emotional attachments.
Consequently, in situations like this one, her dependence on her
boyfriend and desire to please her boyfriend‟s good friend, Scott. Like
others with her personality tests, Ms. B. would rely on denial and
repression to keep out of her consciousness any anxiety-provoking
thoughts that might threaten her emotional connection to her boyfriend.
Thus, doubts about Scott‟s honesty and, by implication, about her
boyfriend‟s character, would be repressed. Her unusual gullibility in
situations of this kind would therefore explain her behavior
Case study

21. In groups, discuss how the expert witness‟ testimony
impacted:
 narrative coherence and
 narrative fidelity
Case study

22.  Jurors assess the credibility of the story by comparing to
the cultural standards:
 In Ms. B.‟s story it‟s how the „honest people‟ behave;
 In rape cases it‟s how „proper‟ men and women behave and to
whom rape happens;
 The preexisting narrative changes when it is replaced by
another cultural standard:
 In Ms. B‟s case, another plausible narrative is how fools are
duped by love;
 Incremental change in rape stories may be rooted in pointing
weaknesses in cultural narratives and providing new
information.
Case study summary

23. Rape narratives are formed through views of:
Rape itself; when & why it happens; to & by whom;
Gender-role stories about similarities & differences of
genders; their strengths & weaknesses;
+ Race & class narratives.
Rape narratives

24. Labeling in the courtroom:
 If Ms. B. is labeled as „dishonest‟, jury will apply to her
all the attributes of a dishonest person;
 If a rape victim is labeled a „slut‟, with that comes
certain attitude that forms the characterological part of the
narrative.
Rape narratives:

25. „Cultural rape narratives‟ are the culturally pervasive
tales of proper intergender sexual behavior that affect the
crafting of courtroom and rape narratives at trials.
Common cultural rape narrative themes are:
 Silenced Voices;
 Bullying;
 Race Myths;
 Rape as a Seduction.
Rape narratives:

26. Women
Silencing
Race
myths
Bullying
Rape as
seduction
Cultural
Rape Myths

27. • Sociologists recognize silencing as the hallmark of an
oppressed group;
• There is a correlation between the degree to which a
society silences its women and the prevalence of rape.
Silenced Voices

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30. Socially acceptable gender roles:
Women, like children, should be seen and not heard.
Like children, women who do speak up and make noise
are „bad‟, annoying, unworthy, and if they make excuses
for their noise, lying.
A woman need not to be literally silent. She may speak
if her voice soothes, entertains, informs, or otherwise
serves male needs.
What she may not do is express her own needs or
views, whether for sex (even if far short of
intercourse), power, political gain, or economic
achievement.
Silenced Voices

31. Women who speak up are seen as violent, aggressing
against men.
Women who express a need for sexual attention and
physical freedom while refusing to „go all the way‟ with a
man is a „tease‟.
Silenced Voices

32. On one hand, she is consenting to intercourse because
she surely knows that her behavior can lead only to that
inevitable result, and she is responsible for the
consequences.
On the other hand, she ‘calls rape on herself’ by using
her enormous sexual power to torture the male, whom she
knows has an uncontrollable need to possess her once she
expresses her sexuality.
 She is thus both consenting to intercourse & deserving
of punishment for her vicious behavior;
 Therefore, she is not really raped.
Silenced Voices

33.  A woman who instead of first voicing sexual needs,
responds to an expression of male need with a firm ‘no’,
or refuses to acknowledge or respond to the male‟s efforts
– in short, a woman, who clearly communicates her
own desire not to have sex – is viewed as „aloof‟ and
hence equally aggressive, assaulting male prerogatives
and feelings.
 A clear expression of her own wishes is unacceptable,
angry, and deserving of punishment.
Silenced Voices

34.  After the sexual act, a woman who cries rape, who
speaks of her violation, her assailed dignity, and her
physical and emotional pain, is to be distrusted, for she
breaks the rule of silence.
 While it is believed that the „real rapes‟ occasionally
happen, but such an assertive speech from a woman is so
unusual that it is to be greeted with suspicion and with
presumptions of lies based on criminal motives rather
than acceptance.
Silenced Voices

35. Rape in the military
• Watch the movie:
The Invisible War (2012)
Silenced Voices

36. Common defense strategies in rape cases in which
consent is raised as a defense:
Continual questioning about the details of a rape to locate
inconsistencies or revisions;
Stressing delay in reporting the crime;
Revealing a preexisting sexual relationship;
Seeking to undermine the general character of the
victim by, for example, emphasizing hitchhiking,
excessive drinking or smoking, wearing seductive
clothing, and bad language.
Silenced Voices

37. Delay in reporting as a byproduct of silencing:
Women are taught that rape is avoidable and so, when it
happens, it is partly their fault.
Women know (at least implicitly) of the suspicion with
which female voice is treated and thus fear being both
blamed and disbelieved. Thus initial silence is
consistent with cultural expectations.
If the woman later reports the rape, her initial silence is
offered as evidence that she lies. She is expected to be
quiet, yet she must speak loudly if there is a „real‟ rape.
Catch-22: if she speaks, she will face skepticism; if she
is silent, her later complaints may not appear credible.
Silenced Voices

38. The reasons for the inconsistencies in the initial and
later testimony of rape:
Initially a rape victim may want to smooth things out just
hoping that it all will go away, to make things normal
again;
A victim may be reluctant to face all the details of
recently survived trauma because memories are too
painful;
The notion that the rape could be prevented leads to selfblame and feeling „dirty‟, that leads to minimizing the
most horrific details;
As she heals, she may be able to tell a more coherent
story.
Silenced Voices

39. For most men, aggression, whether physical or verbal, is
instrumental, a way of controlling others, attaining
social or material benefits, dominance and self-esteem.
First, because aggression is seen as a necessary and
desirable male behavior, a great deal of aggression,
including physical, will be tolerated before the
aggressor is deemed a „bully‟.
Second, because aggression is about attainment, men
tend to talk of aggression in terms of winning and losing,
the language of games. The great male fear is of losing.
Third, men may see women‟s crying as a strategy to
‘win’ over the sincere deep emotions.
Bullies

40. Notions of masculinity involve:
Aggression;
Explosive sexuality;
Sexual success;
Independence from relationships;
Physical toughness;
Loss of empathy.
Bullies

41. Many men see aggression as the fair rules of the „game‟;
Many women accept these rules of the game because of
cultural conditioning; this includes putting up with
unwanted force.
Thus the men may think that the women understand
the ‘rules’ of the game and assume consent, whereas
women may simply be delaying the possibility of an
open confrontation, hoping that there won’t be need
for that.
Bullies

42. Although many adult males might publicly frown on such
behavior, especially once they are past young adulthood,
they might secretly be proud of their sons for „scoring‟
with instrumental aggression.
Many women accept the logic that instrumental
aggression is part of male sexuality, that we all know
the rules of the game, and that women who choose to
play the game have not been raped, even where
significant male aggression was necessary to overcome
the woman’s ‘reluctance’.
Bullies

43. Video:
A Call
To Men
Tony Porter

44. There is an assumption that only bullies bully: there is a
connection between character and behavior.
Therefore there is another assumption that men who
revert only to limited aggression in many life spheres are
neither bullies nor rapists.
True rapists are seen as ‘psychopaths in dark alleys’.
Society carries on this myth. Media focuses on stranger
rapes than on acquaintance rapes.
In actuality, the majority of rapists are acquainted with
the victim. (more on this – later in the presentation).
Bullies

45. For more information contact us at:
sudomaov@gmail.com
www.SudomaConsulting.com
To be continued…