Suspected Teen Rape Victim Jailed

'She's a victim, not a criminal,' says her lawyer
By Mary Papenfuss,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 6, 2012 1:14 AM CDT
Updated Apr 6, 2012 3:33 AM CDT
Suspected Teenage Rape Victim Jailed
Scales of justice.   (AP Photo/Wally Santana)

A 17-year-old suspected rape victim is being held in a California juvenile detention facility to ensure that she'll show up to testify against her attacker. She failed to turn up at a preliminary hearing for her suspected assailant, forcing prosecutors to refile the case. “The last thing we ever want to do is put a victim or a witness in custody, but when you have serious crimes of violence and multiple offenses, you have to balance the protection of the community,” Sacramento County assistant district attorney tells ABC News.

A judge filed the order to hold the girl—who has been raised in foster homes and has a history of running away—as a material witness over three weeks ago. “I think it’s outrageous that the DA’s office wants to put a rape victim—a juvenile rape victim—in custody, as if she were the criminal, in a case where she is the victim,” the girl’s attorney told the Sacramento Bee. (More rape stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X