Standing Together to Support Survivors
Today, concerned citizens gathered in front of the Nesbett courthouse to show their support for rape survivors, raise awareness of the huge problem of sexual assault in the state of Alaska, and to protest the bail and release to house arrest with an electronic monitoring device of accused serial rapist Anchorage police officer Anthony Rollins.
People came and went over the three hours of the demonstration. Between a dozen and 20 demonstrators were there at any one time, standing in a steady rain holding signs.
The Associated Press (I want his camera), and Alaska’s local NBC and CBS affiliates were there that I noticed. Concerned citizens, and representatives of STAR (Standing Together Against Rape) were there speaking out and talking to the media.
I got to meet several Mudflatters in person, which is always great. We are a committed, concerned, feisty bunch. We talked about politics, about the horrible problem of sexual violence in our state, and the fact that sometimes what it takes is a group of squeaky wheels to get things noticed.
Nancy Haag, Executive Director of STAR, said protesters also wanted to raise awareness of Alaska’s sexual assault problem, perennially rated highest in the nation. According to FBI statistics, the rate of forcible rape was 77.4 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2007, and 64.3 per 100,000 residents in 2008, far higher than other states.
“If as a community we’re not outraged about these things, it’s just going to continue,” Haag said. “So we do need a response. We need a responsive justice system and we need a community that is outraged.”
The group was mostly women, but there were a few men there as well, which was great.
For local coverage of the event, you can check out the Fairbanks Daily News Miner. I have not seen video available yet, but will post it when I can. Hopefully the Anchorage Daily News will have something on this as well.
[Anyone wishing to further report this story can use any of these pictures.]
20 for the rape victim, 2 bazilliion for the (alleged) raper? WTF?
What a nice thing to do for the Survivors, AKM. I’m sure they appreciated it. Many of us in the Mudflats community all over the world were there in spirit and solidarity with you.
Good for you in bringing attention to this rape problem. It is outrageous that so much sexual violence happens against women, particularly in AK.
This is a good article from Charles Blow about child victims of sexual abuse.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/10/opinion/10blow.html?ref=opinion
I think it is great that there was a substantial show of support for the women.
I still have to say that arguing that Rollins should be held without bail is fundamentally opposed to our system of criminal jurisprudence. We presume that the accused is innocent until proven guilty, no matter how many accusers there may be, or who they may be. This is supposed to apply to a black guy in Alabama just as much as to a black guy in Alaska. Short-circuiting the process for the black guy in Alaska is not an overall good idea.
The purpose of bail is to allow those accused of crimes (but not yet proven guilty) to stay out of jail until they are actually tried, in view of the fact that not all accusations turn out to be true (cf. Tawana Brawley, or the Duke LaCrosse team). But the concept is that the bail amount should be large enough to ensure that the accused will actually show up for trial. Because of this, bail is sometimes denied, usually to people who are accused of capital crimes.
Now, I happen to think that Rollins’s bail should have been set considerably higher — 250K, or maybe a million — because the multiple accusations suggest a high probability of guilt, and therefore the deterrent to flight should be larger. But I still think bail should be possible. I know that I’m a guy, and most Mudpups are women, but even though you may not agree, I still have to say that rape (of either sex) is not as bad as murder.
Those accused of murder are sometimes granted bail — usually quite a large sum, to be sure. Given that Rollins is out on bond, there are three possibilities:
1. He shows up for trial, and is acquitted on all charges. I think this is unlikely, but if it happens, it means that he is innocent, as far as our legal system can tell, and therefore it’s a good thing that he didn’t have to spend time inside.
2. He shows up for trial and is convicted on one or more charges. He will go to prison for somewhere between several years and forever. The fact that he was free on bail for a few months will be an asterisk.
3. He skips bail, probably abandoning his family in the process. I’m not sure about AK law, but in many states this would lead to him being tried and convicted in absentia. More significantly, he would now represent a 50K debit to the bail bond agency, which has to cough up the bond if he flees. It is allowed to use force, including lethal force, to retrieve him, in order to get its money back. Spending life on the run from bail-bond enforcers might not be much better than spending life in prison.
To reiterate my main points: in the US, we are supposed to be innocent until proven guilty, by trial. Bail exists so that people who are accused of crimes do not have to spend time in jail until they are tried. If you want to deny bail in a particular case because you are personally certain that the accused is in fact guilty, you ought to realize that you are supporting other people who may want to deny bail in other cases, where your opinion may differ.
Democracy isn’t pretty. The English common law judicial system isn’t pretty either. But the alternatives have their own problems, eh?
Thank you to all the women who showed up to support the victims. Though I was many thousands of miles away, I was with you in spirit.
Strangelet: I don’t think he should have been denied bail, but I do think that his bail should have been considerably higher. He’s not accused of “only” one count of rape, but of serial rape. And he’s not just some guy, but a police officer who is accused of committing multiple acts of sexual assault while on duty. He used his badge to gain access to his alleged victims, which makes the alleged crimes particularly egregious. I live outside NYC, and on every case that I can recall involving a cop accused of betraying the public’s trust by using his position to commit any serious crime (let alone RAPE), the bail was set especially high. If you break down Rollins’ bail PER CHARGE, it’s absolutely outrageous.
The legal process is especially difficult for rape victims — many describe it as feeling like they’re being raped yet again. This is a major reason that so many rape victims don’t report the crime. Rape is traumatic and de-humanizing, but the road to justice shouldn’t be. The judge setting Rollins’ bail should have deminstrated more respect for the victims and the public by setting bail especially high for this case.
I agree with you, stranglet. I do think the main point of the protest was to show support for the victims. It is unfortunate that some seem to wish to deny the accused his rights under the system of criminal law that AK has chosen for itself, but I am also not surprised at the outrage over the amount of bail.
I do hope this case is tried in Anchorage, and there is no change of venue. Concerned citizens and local coverage of the event has spread to a point this may be a argument for the defense to move venue. That may be viewed by the court as just. But it sure would not be a good thing for the whiteness. It may be a good thing if Nancy Haag “star” backed off tell this goes to trial.
Thank You for standing up for the women. I am a survivor of Rape. here is my story;
I originally wrote this on myspace, but thought it needed to be shared here as well….
1979.
18 years old.
The Army.
Germany, sent out to the field for the first time.
The only woman and 1500 men.
I was the Medic, they were Engineers.
Alone, in the dark being watched, only I didn’t know
Vilseck, Germany after two weeks without a shower, we were allowed to go to Tent city for 2 days.
Much Celebrating. Much Drinking. After showers the partying started.
I was invited.
A cute boy
Fun
free drinks
more drinks
Something wrong….
Room spinning
Dizzy
can’t walk
being carried
pass out
wake up
can’t move
tied up
can’t talk
gag in mouth
voices
someone on me
wet between the legs
laughter
another body on me
tears
another body
all night
over and over again
how many?
Don’t know
too many
over and over again
thrusting
sweaty
pawing
pain
tearing
more laughter
in and out of conscience
how many?
could be twenty
could be a hundred
all ranks
all sizes
all ages
all pen*ses
all thrusting
all sweating
lots of pain
smell of greasy tent
smell of booze
smell of tobacco
smell of man sweat
smell of semen
smell of sex
all thrusting
all groping
all squeezing
all pawing
only one, who when he saw my tears, stopped in his tracks
But he walked out, and another came in to take his place
over and over again
no help
none in sight
all night long
in and out of reality
in and out of dreams
more body’s
more men
more thrusting
how many hours?
finally the sweet release of awareness
awakening
naked
in the showers
bruises and blood everywhere
Pain
oh my God the pain
all consuming pain
my clothing in a pile
scrub
scrub
scrub
scrub
scrub
scrub
scrub
scrub
water is cold
scrub some more
scrub
scrub
scrub
scrub
scrub
scrub
scrub
scrub
put on uniform
met at door, by commanding Officer
stern words about MY behavior
told if I talked, it would be MY fault
Threatened with prison for “enticing”
handed orders to be transfered
Told to pack my bags
Transportation waiting
Warned again
If you talk, you die
or worse
watching blindly as the trees roll by
curling up inside of me
hiding the pain
hoping the pain will fade
as the bruises do
can’t walk, can’t sit, can’t take a sh*t
blaming myself
Others have
so why not me?
Guilt
it weighs on a mind
remembering what was said
silence it is my friend
denial
lock the pain away
never talk they said
never talk I did
The pain it became my friend
To this day, it never ends.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This is the first time I have EVER written or spoken about that night. The ONLY reason I have after thirty years is, because it is STILL going on! What happened to me, happens to thousands of women in the military every year!
1 in 3 women in the military have been raped.
Let me repeat that so it sinks in….
1 in 3 women in the Military have been raped.
I have learned through the years one must NEVER be silent when it comes to Rape and Abuse! otherwise it can (and does) happen again, and again…..
Even though my rape took place over 25 years ago, because I only recently started to talk about it, I have been suffering from PTSD. By writing about it it has awoken emotions that I had managed to keep shoved down and under lock and key. I am very raw emotionally recently. I recognize that this is the first step to healing fully. Since I never opened up before, it has had time to fester and rot in my soul and I am lancing the boil of long over due emotions. They have been pouring out (and my poor family is having to deal with the brunt of it, even though they are innocent of any wrong doing.) Fortunately I have a wonderful husband who loves me and is understanding enough to help me cope.
I am trying to deal with how it affected my life and the choices I made in partners because of the Rape and because I never talked about it. I have been in one abusive relationship after another (at least up to the last 11 years, that I have been happily married to my very caring and understanding husband).
I have battled low self esteem and never connected that and the abusive relationships together with the rape. I never felt I deserved happiness or deserved to be treated like a human being.
I am in a place now, where I am finally understanding that I DO deserve happiness, that I do Deserve a good relationship and that I am a women of worth!
But the healing process has made me have to relive everything and it is tearing me up….
Thank you for sharing your story. I know that most of us reading this will find it difficult to even comprehend how people can do these things. You are brave. Keep fighting that battle, and know that there are so many who support you, and admire your courage. I am one of them. AKM
Great job spotlighting the pushback against sexual crimes in Alaska, AKM.
Unfortunately, it takes a high profile case such as this one to get the general public’s attention.
#8 –
Typo – ? “But it sure would not be a good thing for the whiteness.” do you mean witnesses?
Did anyone ask the women involved if a protest is the kind of support they needed or wanted?
Yes, to your second question. AKM
Doughting Thomas my heart goes out to you.I have read other stories similar to yours and the men were let go and the women called liars because they told.They and their families were punished for bringing things like what happened to you forward..I am heartened to hear you are getting the help you need.I would hope the commanding officer if still around would read this and realize just what he and the others did to you,but those are the kind of men whom think women have no vale but one so they would not admit to doing wrong.
sorry value
#11
yes i do. thank you.
Doughting Thomas…..I didn’t read the comments earlier today when I posted. Going back over them this evening, I’m stunned by your courage in recounting your experience.
Know that even strangers are holding you up in their thoughts.