Final Essay

Words: 2457
Pages: 10

Phase 5 Individual Project
CJUS448-02
Elizabeth Passer
Professor Anthony Nici
June 25, 2012
Re: Final

Processing the crime scene will be essential to bringing forth criminal charges against any assailant of the crime of rape. In the case of a rape the prime crime scene is the rape victim. Biological evidence is inevitably left behind. There could in this instance be evidence left behind on sheets. In this scenario the bed of the ‘No Tell Motel’ will likely have some physical evidence such as hairs, bodily secretions, possibly condoms left behind in the trash or flushed down the toilet, clothing of the victim or the assailant. The crime scene has been contaminated by sightseers from the motel (management), and visiting
…show more content…
The setting is very important to gain information and have control over the interview. The interview room should be properly equipped to handle each type of interview of a suspect and possible victim or witness (Nici, Live Chat 8, 2012). For the victim a rape kit should be done at the hospital by appropriately trained personnel, and the police investigator should do whatever is possible to encourage this process. However Rape victims must be allotted control in making these decisions. In the state of New York a rape victim is afforded great latitude in the reporting process. In this case I personally do not see how anything other than statutory rape and endangering the welfare of a child can be filed. If in fact what Mr. Torres says is true concerning the girl being his girlfriend and their purpose at the motel was to have consensual sex. Statutory Rape in New York state says that if the perpetrator is above the age of 18 and the victim less than 15 there is a lack of ability to consent, making it second degree sexual offense under New York State Penal Code 130 (New York State Crime Victims' Board, undated). Posing questions to a fourteen year old female will be tricky their reasoning abilities in the best of circumstances are underdeveloped at this age. Questions of young rape victims should be open ended. The reasoning in this is never asks a question that suggests a particular response. Questions should be