Effects Of Being A Victim Of Crime

When it comes to being a victim of a crime there are a lot of different aspects that take effect in how much the victim will be affected. The type of crime, whether or not you were present at the time of the crime, and just what type of person you are all play a part in how becoming a victim of crime will affect your life. However studies show that in general one of the most affected victims are rape victims. Rape can have a devastating effect, both physically and emotionally on a victim. It can leave the victim scared, afraid to trust friends or family. It can cause the victim to fall away from the world and seclude themselves in their homes away from work, friends, and family. There are a lot of different variables that go into whether or
It is estimated that out of every ten rapes only one to four of those are reported to the police. (Williams 1984) Social scientists have researched as to why victims don't report rape and have found a wide range of reasons ranging from fear, the characteristics of the victim themselves, the relationship with the perpetrator, beliefs, and the details of the rape itself. Some victims fear retaliation from the rapist themselves, they also do not report due to the embarrassment and shame they feel. They also may fear rejection from a significant other, friends or even from family. This fear may cause the victim to want to protect not only themselves but as well her their family, friends or significant other. Research has found that some victims put the blame for being raped on themselves, or they believe friends, or family will blame them. (Williams 1984) The nature of the relationship between the victim and the attacker has shown to play a big role in whether or not the victim will report the attack. If the victim personally knows the perpetrator then it is unlikely the victim will report the attack for fear they will be given a harsh sentence, or they may resent and hate the victim. This could lead the victim to be more likely in blaming themselves, causing the victim to believe they may have led the attacker on. Even if they wanted to report the attack the victim may
When asked why multiple victims stated that they did not want to press charges so that they could avoid the notoriety and stigma that goes along with rape cases and so they did not have to go through testifying in court. The victims do not want to testify in court because sometimes in certain victims that is as much a psychological crisis as the attach itself. (Borgida & White 1978) In old school or traditional common law rules of evidence, the defense was allowed to question the victim about their sexual history with other people prior to the defendant, causing for embarrassment or shame. This allows the defense to try to impeach the victim’s credibility by hi-lighting the victim’s unchaste character. The main goal for the defense doing this is to show that the victim may have consented to different sexual advances in the past and more than likely have consented to the sexual encounter in question. To fix this forty starts since 1975 have instated the “rape shield” which helps defend the victim from scrutinizing questions about their sexual history prior to the attack. President Carter signed into federal law