After a conversation with one of the most intelligent women I have had the pleasure of speaking with, however painfully short a chat it was, I have spent a couple of weeks in deep contemplation on the subject of rape. This heinous act has been cast back into the lime light due to an obvious, to all rational beings, injustice in which an animal found guilty of rape was sentenced to six months in jail. This is the MINIMUM sentence for simple, misdemeanor assault. Assault, under California law is, “an attempt to use force or violence on someone else.” This individual didn't, “attempt” violence, he committed it, which means it is assault AND battery which is defined as, “the actual use of force or violence on someone else.” Then California law makes this distinction, “But if a California battery does in fact result in a serious injury, then you may be charged instead with the separate but related crime of battery causing serious bodily injury.” If you don't consider this a valid description of rape, please let me know how you feel it differs. If this crime was treated as battery causing serious bodily injury, the sentence would range from 1-4 years and up to $10,000 in fine.
I feel the problem arises from the misconception that rape is a sexual crime. The sexual aspect of this crime is immaterial, rape is a crime of violence. The problem with treating this crime as sexual means that the defense invariably begins the process of “victim shaming”, a vile and deplorable device that is ridiculous and would not be attempted in a case of battery causing serious bodily injury. An attempt to say that a guy was “asking for it” because he was wearing a v-neck shirt or that he wanted it and didn't say no would be a laughable, unsupportable defense.
This dichotomy is unacceptable and ethically untenable. Once again, our legal system has shown its ragged state. Just as some have found my support for jury nullification objectionable I am sure some will find my position here to be wrong. Aggression, in any form, initiated against another is the only actual, ethically consistent definition of crime, whether that aggression is in the form of a punch in the mouth, non-consensual sex, murder, trespassing or theft. All are initiation of force against another and are therefore crimes against the sovereignty of a sapient being. (I still consider a pat down or cavity searches rape, by legal definition). All crimes should be treated as what they are, aggression against another.