A Butler County, Ohio sheriff’s deputy was convicted Thursday of kidnapping and raping a 19-year-old woman. A judge ruled that Kirk Kash, 38, grabbed the woman’s neck and forced her to perform oral sex on him after he discovered her having consensual sex with an 18-year-old man outside a Forest Fair Mall nightclub. Kash, who was moonlighting as a mall security guard, threatened to ticket the woman, who later said she feared his gun if she did not comply. Investigators found Kash’s semen and the victim’s DNA on his shirttail, providing solid evidence that the oral assault took place. Kash, who resigned from the sheriff’s office shortly after the accusation surfaced, faces 6-20 years in prison and will be sentenced on September 10th.
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LAPD Destroyed Evidence in Sexual Assault Cases; Reform of Police Procedure Urged
The Los Angeles Police Department has admitted that inadequate training caused the destruction of DNA evidence from over 1,100 sexual assault cases. Detectives allegedly ordered the destruction of all DNA evidence over six years old because they were unaware that the California statute of limitations for rape had been extended from six years to ten years in 2001. The new statute extends the potential prosecution period to ten years from the offense, or within one year after a suspect is identified. The Los Angeles District Attorney’s office estimates that destruction and loss of DNA evidence may have occurred in over 4,000 unsolved sexual assault cases in Los Angeles County in the last six years. None of the destroyed evidence was ever analyzed. This lapse in police protocol not only adversely impacts the thousands of women whose cases remain unsolved, but also affects innocent people who may now not be able to overturn their convictions.
Lack of DNA analysis in sexual assault cases is a widespread problem in police departments. Many departments claim that they’re unable to analyze all of their DNA rape kits due to lack of funding and costly analysis procedures. Considering that an average rapist commits between 8-12 sexual assaults before he is arrested, immediate analysis of DNA evidence is crucial to protecting women. In some states it’s even leading to indictments based solely on DNA evidence, regardless of whether or not a suspect has been identified, thus allowing for prosecution even if an arrest is made decades after the indictment. Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney of New York has authored a bill which will improve and standardize the process by which law enforcement analyzes DNA evidence from sexual assaults. The Debbie Smith Bill , which has been cosponsored by more than 100 of Maloney’s congressional colleagues, will provide resources for police departments to address their backlog of unanalyzed DNA kits, and will encourage departments to analyze each kit within 10 days of receipt. It will also fund the training of law enforcement officers and sexual assault nurse examiners, and will federally mandate the standardization of the DNA kits throughout the country. The bill, and its counterpart in the Senate, are currently under review, although hearings in the house have not been scheduled. If approved, the new funding would significantly improve the handling of sexual assault cases in the U.S.
Oregon Officer Indicted on 15 Counts of Domestic Violence and Official Misconduct
A grand jury indicted a ten-year veteran of the Portland Police Bureau last week on charges of domestic violence, official misconduct, and burglary. Among other things, Officer Michael Pimentel is accused of assaulting and harassing his girlfriend, tampering with a police report, and second-degree criminal mischief. Pimentel is currently on paid administrative leave. Despite the charges against him, many of Pimentel’s colleagues have rallied around him, including the police union, which held a benefit for him earlier this month to help with legal bills. If convicted of the domestic violence charges, Pimentel will lose his ability to work as a police officer due to the Lautenberg law, which prohibits domestic violence offenders from owning firearms.
Historic Vote: Women’s Treaty Passes Committee
With the steadfast leadership of Sen. Joseph Biden (D-DE), the committee’s current chair, and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), the committee’s sole female member, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee this morning passed the Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), also known as the Women’s Treaty, by a vote of 12-7. “I am optimistic that when CEDAW reaches the Senate floor before the elections, it will be ratified,” said Feminist Majority President Eleanor Smeal. This historic vote marks the first time in 22 years that the treaty has made it out of committee in time for a vote by the full Senate. Supporters packed the room during the committee vote, with virtually no opposition visible. Supporters present included the Feminist Majority and its president, Eleanor Smeal; the National Council of Women’s Organizations and its president, Martha Burk; the Business and Professional Women/USA and its CEO, Jane Smith; and the General Federation of Women’s Clubs.
Take Action: Thank Senators on the Foreign Relations Committee who voted for CEDAW
More on the News on the Women’s Treaty
Background on the Women’s Treaty
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will vote Thursday on the expansion of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, funding for reconstruction, and humanitarian aid.
Fort Bragg Murders Expose Domestic Violence in Military
The recent murders of four military wives point to a growing problem of domestic violence in the military, experts say. In less than two months, four women have been killed by their husbands, all military soldiers stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. Two of the four women were fatally shot, and their husbands then committed suicide. One woman was strangled by her husband, and the fourth was stabbed by her estranged husband at least 50 times, who later set her home on fire.
Congress established the Domestic Violence Task Force of the U.S. Department of Defense after the rate of incidents of domestic violence in the military rose from 18.6 to 25.6 per 1000 military personnel between 1990 and 1996. According to the Miles Foundation, a nonprofit organization that tracks domestic violence in the military, the Department of Defense has identified 61,093 offenders in the armed forces or civilians married to active duty personnel, and this does not reflect repeat offenses. In the past year-and-a-half, the task force has called for major changes in the way the military handles domestic violence cases.
The task force points out that the military does not consistently follow federal law that makes it illegal for persons under restraining orders or who have been convicted of domestic violence to buy or possess a gun, including members of the armed forces and law enforcement. Major Gary Kolb, a spokesperson for the Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg, told the New York Times that he had never heard of such a law.
The Feminist Majority and the National Center for Women & Policing have been working to prevent military and police personnel from being exempted from the Domestic Violence Offenders Gun Ban.
Pakistan: Police Response to Crimes Against Women Lacking
The suicide of a young woman raped at gunpoint follows a series of recent incidents in which horrific crimes against women in Pakistan’s Punjab province have been brought to the world’s attention. Since the case of Mukhtaran Bibi, who was gang-raped as punishment for her brother’s “crime,” made headlines last month Ð the number of women reporting rapes has skyrocketed, according to the New York Times. While six men were arrested for the crime against Bibi, women’s rights advocates are concerned that other reports are not being taken seriously. “Women are encouraged to report the crime of rape now,” Asma Jehangir, the most prominent female lawyer and women’s rights advocate in Pakistan told the Times. “We are, of course, receiving information that they are getting very disappointed.”
Naseem Mai told the police she would kill herself if the man who raped her was not arrested, according to the New York Times. Two days later she watched as the police allowed her rapist to flee. She died moments later after drinking a bottle of pesticide. Although the man was arrested a week later, Naseem’s family does not have much faith in justice Ð her rapist is from a wealthy family who can easily bribe the police.
Meanwhile, a deal last week between two Pakistani families settling a “blood debt” was canceled after details of eight forced marriages prompted a national outcry. To spare the lives of four men from one family who were convicted and sentenced to die for the murder of two men from another family, eight girls Ñ ages 5 to 18 years old Ñ were offered, along with $130,000, for marriage to the victims’ family. The intended husbands, most of whom already had wives, were considerably older – one was 80 years old. Fervent protests by human rights organizations, including the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), Aurat Foundation, Women Action Forum, Rozan and Amal, led to intervention by village elders and the Pakistani government. The four convicted men may again face execution, unless an alternative settlement is reached.
While the number of forced marriages each year in Pakistan is unknown, experts suggest they are common practice, according to CNN.com. “Women continue to be seen as possessions of men, as something that can be given away, like cattle or gold,” said HRCP Joint Director Kamila Hyat. In a statement released last week, the human rights groups expressed the need for change: “We call upon all Pakistanis to raise their voice against this incident, which is not just a matter of the breakdown of law and order, but also of the persistence of the ugly feudal traditions in our society and the absence of the basic norms of human decency and conscience.”
Female Police Officer Reinstated after Three-Year Sexual Harassment Battle
An Orland Park, Illinois police officer was rehired Thursday after waging a three-year court battle against her department over sexual harassment. The Illinois Appellate Court ruled in February that the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners had wrongfully fired Officer Roberta Kramarski in October 1999, just months after she had filed a federal lawsuit alleging sexual harassment. Though the Illinois Supreme Court upheld the ruling, the Department refused to rehire Kramarski until she had undergone physical and psychological evaluation. Kramarski filed disability claims due to physical and emotional injuries she received on the job. The city argued that these claims could indicate that she was unfit to perform police work. Kramarski and the courts disagreed and she returned to work last week. Ironically, one of her first duties was to attend a seminar on sexual harassment and discrimination. Kramarski initially filed charges against her department in July 1999, alleging that she was harassed with derogatory comments, was not given adequate back-up by fellow officers on dangerous jobs, and was passed over for special assignments.
Victims of Pennsylvania Trooper’s Harassment and Assault File Federal Civil Rights Lawsuit
In October 2000, Michael Evans, an ex-Pennsylvania State Police trooper pled guilty to sexual offenses against three teenage girls and three adult women. He is currently serving a 5-10 year sentence in state prison for the crimes. Five of his victims have recently filed a federal civil rights lawsuit seeking damages from the Pennsylvania State Police for their negligence in hiring Evans when he had a documented history of sexual harassment, and for failing to adequately respond to or investigate repeated allegations of sexual harassment of citizens while Evans was working for the State Police. His victims allege that these multiple warning signs were clear indication that Evans was a danger to women, and that the State Police could have prevented Evans’ sexual assault crimes, including the 1999 sexual assault of a 15-year old girl which ultimately led to his arrest. That case, and the publicity surrounding it, resulted in 17 additional women coming forward to say that they too had been harassed or assaulted by Evans. The five women bringing the lawsuit are seeking damages from the State for failure to protect the community and for deliberate negligence in the State’s failure to respond to the multiple sexual harassment allegations brought against Evans.
Three Clinic Shootings This Month in Midwest
A shooting at a clinic in Grand Rapids, Minnesota early yesterday morning marks the third shooting this month at Planned Parenthood clinics in Minnesota and Kansas. No one was injured in the three shootings, which occurred during the early morning hours when the clinics were closed, although damage was extensive. All three clinics provide family planning and basic health care services as well as abortion services or referrals and emergency contraception.
In Monday’s shooting, the clinic’s glass door was shot out and shots were fired into the ceilings and walls, according to the Associated Press. The clinic was closed yesterday and was likely to reopen today. Meanwhile, two shootings occurred over the July Fourth holiday weekend at clinics in Brainerd, Minnesota, 70 miles from Grand Rapids, and Overland Park, Kansas – which is more than 500 miles south of Brainerd. At the Brainerd shooting, five gunshots shattered the front door and two windows on the morning of July Fourth. The Brainerd clinic was up and running Monday after the holiday weekend. In Overland Park, 14 bullets punctured windows and broke furniture on Sunday of the holiday weekend – damage is estimated at $20,000 to $30,000. Police and FBI are investigating all three incidents, it is unknown if they are connected. Anyone with information or questions about the shootings should call the Feminist Majority Foundation’s National Clinic Access Project’s women’s health clinic hotline at 1-877-BE-SAFE-8.
Gender Gap in Earnings Persists Despite Wage Increases with Education
While education leads to significant increases in wages for all workers, increases in men’s salaries still outpace increases for women’s salaries at every level, according to a census report released yesterday as reported in the Washington Post. The report, which was the first to measure the benefits of additional schooling on wages, concludes that this gap in earnings has increased dramatically in recent years with women’s wages still lagging behind men’s wages at every level of education. “It’s been a decade of remarkable progress in reducing poverty rates and increasing income “but it’s not led to dramatic catching up of closing the gap,” said Roderick Harrison, an analyst with the Center for Political and Economic Studies.
Similar findings of an increase in the wage gap were detailed in a study released in January by the General Accounting Office of the US Congress that showed a widening of the wage gap over the past five years in ten major industries. At the time of that study’s release, Representatives John D. Dingell (D-MI) and Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) urged ratification of the United Nations’ Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) as a way to ensure greater protections for pay equity between men and women.
911 Tape Reveals Final Moments of Domestic Violence Victim’s Life
A 911 tape released on Friday has shed light on the final moments of Dorothy Giunta-Cotter, who was killed by her abusive husband on March 26th, 2002 in Amesbury, Massachusetts. The tape reveals that Giunta’s daughter called 911 when her father arrived at the house in violation of a restraining order wearing military fatigues and a gun belt loaded with ammunition. William Cotter took the phone from his daughter and warned the dispatcher that “if they kick the door, someone’s gonna get hurt real bad.” Seconds later, the responding officers burst through the door. Cotter proceeded to shoot his wife once in the back, killing her. Cotter then shot himself in the chest, committing suicide. Cotter was an alcoholic with a 20-year history of verbally and physically abusing his wife. He had repeatedly threatened to kill his family if his wife dared to leave him. Just two weeks before he killed Giunta-Cotter, he was arrested for threatening to shoot her, but was released on bail. The presiding district court judge released Cotter without even holding a hearing to determine Cotter’s potential to follow through with his threat. Domestic violence is the leading cause of homicide and injury of women in the United States. Sadly, murders like those of Dorothy Giunta-Cotter prove that the criminal justice system continues to fail to take domestic violence seriously enough to adequately protect women.
Officer Pleads Guilty to Sexually Assaulting Female Inmate
Another law enforcement officer has pled guilty to sexually assaulting a female inmate. Jose Luis Torres, an Edgewater Park, New Jersey police officer, pled guilty on Friday to second-degree sexual assault and second-degree official misconduct. In exchange for Torres’ guilty plea, prosecutors dropped the sexual assault charge and will sentence him on an official misconduct charge, for which a four-year prison term is recommended. Torres sexually assaulted the female inmate on June 13th, 2002 while transporting her from court to the county’s detention center for women. Semen stains were later found in the transport vehicle resulting in Torres’ arrest. Torres is free on $15,000 cash bail and will be sentenced on September 20th. A 1999 Amnesty International study , which investigated 17 states and the District of Columbia, found that sexual abuse and rape of female inmates is common in correctional facilities in the United States.
New Trial Granted in Self-Defense Homicide Case
The Wisconsin Supreme Court granted a new trial Thursday to a woman sentenced to life in prison for killing her husband. Debra Head contends that she killed her husband in self-defense, but the first judge to hear her case refused to admit evidence of her husband’s history of violent behavior. In a precedent-setting ruling, the court determined that in a case in which the defendant claims self-defense, the prior abuse she suffered at the hands of her victim should be admissible in court. On May 29, 1998, Debra Head killed Harold Head after an argument over their daughter’s pregnancy. According to Head, her husband grew furious and said, “Maybe I should just take care of you guys and just get on with my life.” Allegedly, he then moved in the direction of his firearm. Terrified, Head grabbed the weapon as her husband lunged toward her, and shot the 6-foot, 278-pound man twice. She was subsequently convicted of first-degree intentional murder. Without a witness to the crime, Head was unable to prove that her husband’s actions were threatening enough to warrant the use of violence. Head claims her husband had a history of verbally and physically abusing her. In her new trial, Head will be able to present evidence of her husband’s prior abuse. Domestic violence advocates have applauded the ruling, and hope that it indicates that women who kill their husbands based on a history of previous violence could now receive the lesser conviction of second-degree intentional homicide, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years.
California Extends Time Limit for Childhood Sexual Abuse Claims
Californians who suffered childhood sexual abuse now have more time to bring civil claims against third parties who knew of their abuse but did not take reasonable steps to prevent it. Governor Gray Davis signed a bill recently that allows victims to initiate a lawsuit three years after they discover any psychological injury caused by the abuse. This law replaces a requirement to file suit against third parties by the age of 26. The bill, to be retroactive once it goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2003, includes provisions for those who had filed a lawsuit but were turned away because the statute of limitations had expired.
“In my opinion, anyone who turns a blind eye to the suffering of a child is almost as guilty as the perpetrator of the abuse,” Davis said in a press release. “This law will help ensure that these people who looked the other way at child abusers are held responsible for their inaction.”
The majority of states now have some provision extending the statute of limitations for childhood sexual abuse victims – Connecticut for example, recently passed legislation that allows for victims to file suit 30 years after reaching adulthood, which is 18 or 21 depending on the law at the time.
Officers Investigated for Sexual Assault at Indiana Women’s Prison
Four male correctional officers from the Indiana Women’s Prison have been suspended on charges that they raped female inmates. The Indiana Department of Correction says that this is the first such case in two years. A 1999 Amnesty International study, which investigated 17 states and the District of Columbia, found that sexual abuse and rape of female inmates is common in correctional facilities in the United States. Women inmates are often afraid to come forward because of fear of reprisal, so abuse often goes unreported or is covered up by the facility.
Female Pennsylvania Dispatchers File Sex Discrimination Suit
Two Allegheny County Port Authority women dispatchers allege that the Port Authority and its current chief discriminate against female applicants. The two women, Danielle Stangl and Yvette Koerner, have filed a federal sex discrimination case against the Port Authority and Police Chief William McArdle. The two women allege that McArdle has created a hostile work environment for female employees, rife with verbal harassment and discouragement against seeking positions as police officers. “McArdle doesn’t think females should be police officers,” said Danielle Stangl. The Chief has only appointed one female police officer in his nine years on the force, while he has appointed 29 men to the position. There are 36 officers and 8 supervisors in total in the department, with only 4 of those positions held by women, three of who became officers before McArdle’s term as chief. Stangl and Koerner argue that this disparity is part of a systematic pattern of sex discrimination within the department. Chief McArdle has hired men without any police experience, and one with a drunk driving record, while Stangl and Koerner’s applications were consistently rejected, although both have experience as dispatchers and as part-time police officers in neighboring towns. “Males are openly favored in McArdle’s regime and McArdle has tacitly let it be known that females can’t expect promotion or satisfactory equal treatment,” the women’s suit says. Stangl and Koerner are seeking awards for damages, promotions to police officer, and an injunction forbidding further discrimination in the department. Research by the National Center for Women & Policing indicates that the discrimination, harassment and intimidation experienced by women in the Allegheny County Port Authority are common in police departments across the country, and keep the percentage of women in policing low. Current figures show a rate of only 12.7% women officers in agencies with 100 or more officers, a decrease from rates of 14.3% in 1999.
Press Release: REPEATED POLICE BRUTALITY DEMANDS IMMEDIATE CHANGES
REPEATED POLICE BRUTALITY DEMANDS IMMEDIATE CHANGES Studies Show More Women Officers Would Overhaul a Police Culture of Violence
LOS ANGELES, and WASHINGTON, DC – Donovan Jackson is not alone. The videotaped image of the mentally handicapped teenager being thrown, punched and pushed by an Inglewood police officer epitomizes an unfortunately frequent occurrence in police departments across the nation. Every day, incidents like the one involving Jackson go unreported, indicative of a national police culture that gives officers permission to use excessive force.
Local Inglewood officials, FBI officials and US Attorney General John Ashcroft have all pledged justice for Jackson. However, nothing is being done for the countless others who suffer at the hands of police officers – out of view of a video camera. The National Center for Women &Policing has a solution.
“This incident in Inglewood shows that the time to change this pervasive police culture of violence is long overdue,” said Margaret Moore, Director of the National Center and the highest-ranking sworn woman ever to have served in the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms (ATF). “We’ve done the research and we’ve found that female officers are less likely to use excessive force.”
A male police officer is eight-and-a-half times more likely than a female officer to have an allegation of excessive force sustained against him, according to a recent study of seven major police departments released by the National Center for Women &Policing, a division of the Feminist Majority Foundation.
Female officers report greater support for the principles of community policing; a male officer is two to three times more likely to have a citizen name him in a complaint of excessive force; and the average male officer costs taxpayers between two-and-a-half and five-and-a-half times more in payouts for excessive force. In 1991, the Christopher Commission, appointed in the wake of the Rodney King beating in Los Angeles, concluded: “Female officers are not reluctant to use force but they are not nearly as likely to be involved in use of excessive force.”
“Despite this overwhelming data, women make up a mere 12.7 percent of all sworn officers in departments with 100 officers or more,” said Katherine Spillar, Executive Vice President of the Feminist Majority Foundation. “Increasing the presence of women in law enforcement would not only substantially decrease police use of excessive force, but it would greatly improve service to our nation’s communities. As the city of Inglewood seeks to reform its police practices in the wake of this recent incident, increasing the numbers of women in their force must be included in their agenda.”
“Women and men both do the job of policing equally well. However, as our data shows, women tend to do their job with an emphasis on communication tactics rather than the use of force,” said Eleanor Smeal, president of the Feminist Majority Foundation. “More women officers are needed to stop incidents like the one in Inglewood and to ensure that police officers truly do adhere to the standards of justice.
The National Center for Women & Policing, a division of the Feminist Majority Foundation, promotes increasing the numbers of women at all ranks of law enforcement as a strategy to improve police response to violence against women, reduce police brutality, and strengthen community policing reforms. Men, Women, and Police Excessive Force: A Tale of Two Genders is available at www.womenandpolicing.org.
Cincinnati Officers Sued in Sexual Assault Case
A woman who alleges that two Cincinnati police officers raped her while she was intoxicated has filed a lawsuit against the officers. Officers Robert Kidd and Robert Johnson allegedly gave Ms. Kandy Linthicum a ride home from a bar, where she had consumed numerous alcoholic drinks celebrating her 40th birthday. The officers told her that it was common procedure for police officers to give intoxicated citizens a ride home. According to Ms. Linthicum, she trusted the two men because they were police officers, and allowed them to assist her into her home, where they both raped her. Her case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan Dlott, the same judge overseeing the settlement of the racial profiling and discrimination case against the Cincinnati police. Both officers are currently off-patrol, working in administrative positions. Her attorneys say the case is situation of “abuse of power” and they are seeking compensatory and punitive damages for assault and battery and emotional distress.
Women Police Officers in Peru Victims of Sexist Backlash
In 1998, Lima, Peru replaced the majority of its male traffic officers with female officers, after a study determined that they would be less corrupt than male transit officers who were notorious in Lima for corruption and bribery. The city of Lima took prompt action and now has a transit police force composed of 73% women. However, in the last 18 months, women officers have been assaulted, run over, and dragged through the streets by angry male drivers who apparently didn’t like being pulled over by an incorruptible female officer. Of the 137 abuse cases reported in 2002, women officers were the victims in 90% of the cases, although they are only 73% of the force. Peruvian women’s rights groups have attributed the violence to a macho backlash. Ana Maria Yanez, from the women’s group Manuela Ramos says that the backlash is a reflection of the low status given to women in Peru. “If men beat their wives at home – or don’t let them work or keep them from voicing their opinion – it only makes sense that a man, infuriated by a traffic ticket, will try to run a policewoman down with his car,” she said. Unfortunately, the abusive male drivers have generally not been punished because the judge’s rule that they haven’t wounded the officers enough to warrant jail time. The most recent case may change that. In May 2002, Officer Anamelba Mejia was dragged 20 yards by a minibus, and was then struck by another vehicle that fled the scene. The police are charging the driver who dragged her with attempted murder in the hopes of deterring future abuse by male drivers. Officer Mejia said of the male drivers, “They see us as enemies, not just for being women, but for doing the right thing.”
Officer Accuses Albuquerque Police of Gender-Biased Discipline
Officer Sheryl Paloni has accused the Albuquerque Police Department, of which she is 20-year veteran, of gender discrimination after she was disciplined for firing her sidearm during a pursuit, while male officers guilty of the same error in the same incident were not disciplined. Paloni admits to having shot at the car of a fleeing bank robbery suspect, which is discouraged in department policy, and says she accepts being disciplined for it. However, the complaint she lodged with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is on the grounds that male and female officers involved in the incident were not disciplined equally. Another female officer involved in the bank robbery incident was also disciplined, but none of the male officers were. The Albuquerque Police Department says they are not ready to comment on the accusation.