Rape - Man Uses Craigslist to Arrange Wife’s Rape
Posted on June 17, 2009
Filed Under Rape & Sex Offenses, criminal defense attorney |
Craigslist is under attack again. A North Carolina husband used the popular classified advertising website to find a rapist to act out his sexual fantasies on his unsuspecting wife. The husband arranged for a man he found on craigslist to rape his wife at knifepoint while he watched. The wife told the Associated Press she has been completely traumatized by the unexpected attack, saying, “This is the worst thing that has ever happened to me.”
The woman’s husband is being held on a $200,000 bond on a charge of first degree rape. The recently arrested rapist is being held on a $250,000 bond and is charged with first degree rape and three other sex offenses. Both men remain in jail.
For the past year, craigslist has been under attack by law enforcement officials in 40 states for running prostitution ads. In an agreement reached late last year, the website agreed to require identifying information from erotic services advertisers to discourage illegal businesses.
Last month, craigslist agreed to shut down its erotic services section entirely after a Boston medical student was charged in the death of a woman who advertised erotic massage on the website. Craigslist has pledged to carefully screen ads to a new adult services section before posting them. However, a search today on the Los Angeles craigslist site for both erotic services and adult services brought up lists of personal ads.
In California, “sex offenses include all types of sexual activities ranging from the serious crime of rape, usually defined as sexual penetration without consent, to the less serious crime of prostitution, usually described as sex for hire,” explains expert Los Angeles criminal defense attorney Stephen Rodriguez.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, every two minutes, someone in the U.S. is raped, and 73% of rape victims know their attacker. Under California law, there are three classifications of rape:
- Statutory rape is a sexual act with a minor under age 18. Even if consensual, charges can be brought by the victim’s parents or the state.
- Date rape is forced sex between people who know each other during a social engagement such as a date. Sometimes attackers use drugs like Rohypnol and GHB to incapacitate their dates before raping them. Date rape is a serious problem on college campuses.
- Spousal rape is sex forced on one spouse by the other without consent.
Except in the case of statutory rape where age is primary, criminal defense for rape generally centers on the often murky issue of consent. The strength of evidence, mistaken identity, and the accuser’s credibility also offer avenues for criminal defense of rape.
-LegalPro
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