When is Rape Not Rape?

CR101 Radio - Podcast Network · Mar 4, 2026 · 3m

A shocking case in New York exposed the failure of justice when a young bank teller was held at knifepoint, her face covered, and raped, yet the judge asked only whether she had seen penetration. When she said no, the criminal was acquitted of first-degree rape and violent robbery, convicted instead of lighter charges of nonviolent robbery and sexual abuse, highlighting a dangerous precedent that vision could determine the severity of a crime. The prosecutor rightly noted that if this were the standard, crimes against blind victims could never be prosecuted, yet the judge ignored this…