Cue lots of articles about coppers not being prosecuted for lies and misdemeanours...then judges...then Celebs...
Completely agree with that too Bradders, but I also suspect that if after these allegations had come to light, no other celebrities had been actually prosecuted, we'd now be contributing to a thread about why not... the public demands action, but it's not surprising if cases such as these are hard to prove. In a sense that shows our legal system is actually pretty sound.
Another aspect to this is the problem of having no Statute of Limitations to bring to bear on cases like this. Apparently most other countries do. Germany has apparently introduced changes which limit the extent to which financial compensation can be claimed for historical crimes of a sexual nature unless very strong evidence can be produced - apparently this has resulted in a big reduction in the number of accusations being brought forward. Without being able to filter out cases because of a combination of the amount of time that has passed (with allowance for cases involving minors) and the degree of severity, the CPS is in a difficult position. And those who may have been victims, or feel that they were, may certainly have some financial incentive as well. I suspect that in many other countries DLT could only have been brought to court for the more recent cases, and it looks like he may still have to face that.
Its like a script in here.... [Inside of the house. An old man comes out of the closet by the stairs and relaxes on the couch in the drawing. The Armed Forces man is at the table. Three mice are playing cards] MOUSE #1: I'll see you, Jimmy! MOUSE #2: Well, I've got the seven of spades! MOUSE #1: You rat! MOUSE #2: I'm a mouse! [They laugh] [Cut to a plate. A stick of butter and a carrot are skating to music. After a while the music stops, and they kiss. Rooster crows, and everybody scatters. Cut to outside Neil's bedroom. He is on his windowsill looking out. He stars at the sun. Suddenly, the sun splits in two.] NEIL: [sighs] Morning has broken. [fade to kitchen. Rick is tucking in his shirt. Vyvyan is writing something. Mike is pulling cornflakes out of the box one by one. Neil is just staring off into space] MIKE: She loves me. She loves me lots. She loves me. She loves me lots. She loves me. [Vyvyan stops writing. Rick sits down at the table] VYVYAN: Well, I finished the new car competition. I'm gonna win a Ford Tippex any minute. It's quite easy really, all you gotta do is match up six pictures of famous noses with six pictures of famous bogeys! Thought that would shock you! Well, it's not through because then you have to say in ten words what cornflakes mean to you. So I put, 'Cornflakes. Cornflakes. Cornflakes, Cornflakes, Cornflakes. Cornflakes, Cornflakes, Cornflakes, Cornflakes!' RICK: Pathetic! You'll never win, Vyvyan! VYVYAN: Why not? RICK: That's only nine words! VYVYAN: Oh, yeah. [writes] 'Cornflakes.' RICK: [plays with his ear] Anyway, you'll still never win because nothing interesting ever happens to us! VYVYAN: Stop being so boring, Rick. RICK: Oh, that's nice, isn't it? That's very nice! Coming from someone as boring as you! NEIL: Look, can you guys stop hassling each other? I'm getting really bored with it, alright? RICK: Oh, dear me! Poor old Neil's getting bored! The most boring person in the whole world is finally getting a taste of his own medicine! MIKE: Alright, I think we're overdoing the boredom motif in this conversation here. It's time to extend our vocabulary. NEIL: Alright, Mike. All I said was that I was getting bored. VYVYAN: Yes, we heard what you said and it was very boring! MIKE: Vyv, I thought we decided... VYVYAN: Yes, YOU decided, Michael! RICK: Guys! Guys! Look at us! Squabbling! Bickering, like children. What's happened to us? We never used to be like this! VYVYAN: Yes, we did. MIKE: Yeah, he's right, Rick. We've always been like this. RICK: Yes, I know. But that's just exactly my point! Nothing ever changes! Nothing ever happens to us! VYVYAN: Monopoly? RICK: [sighs] Yes. [fade to Mike, Vyvyan, and Rick playing Monopoly on the drawing room floor. Mike is moving his piece]
i don't know the ins and out of these cases nor am i making any insinuations of guilt, but what this does demonstrate is that by their very nature its very hard to prosecute rape and sexual assault because it tends to come down to one persons word against another which in a court of law is pretty shakey ground, especially if many years have gone by since the alleged offence took place. it doesn't do anyone any good to have so many of these allegations made then get thrown out in court. if none of these high profile cases result in a conviction i would be surprised if anyone who found themselves a victim of such a crime would be likely to bother reporting it in future. a fact that disturbs me enormously.
i suspect if saville went to court he probably would have got off too he had the money for good lawyers, the notoriety and his victims were mainly messed up and vulnerable kids who probably would have been discredited and picked apart by clever defence council
Stuart Hall was convicted on a series of sex charges, sent to prison, had his sentence increased by the Court of Appeal, and now faces a further series of charges. So I don't think we need worry about '... none of these high profile cases result in a conviction...'
Your right pete like many joe public i clearly have a short and selective memory. but 3 acquittals in a row still doesnt look good.
