Book Review: A False Report - A True Story of Rape in America by T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong

In 2016 I listened to an episode of This American Life on NPR that stunned me.  I had known for years that police often failed to take allegations of sexual assault seriously, but it had never really hit home that persons could also be charged for making a false report if the investigating officer felt that the story did not add up and the person must be lying. 

The story that was told on This American Life was taken from an article authored by T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong in ProPublica.  Miller and Armstrong had been working on the story separately and came together after finding that each had separate parts of the narrative.

The story begins in Lynnwood, Washington with a young woman being raped by an intruder shortly after she had moved into her new apartment.  She had spent years in the foster care system and was now on her own.  She had decisive plans for her future.  The rape was brutal and she would have certainly have experienced some long term trauma from the experience but the accusations by the police, friends, and foster families that she had made up the story to get attention laid the groundwork  for years of depression. 

Along with Marie’s story we also learn the details of the investigations into a string of rapes occurring in Colorado.  Fortunately, the police departments in Colorado used cooperation and the most-up-to-date forms of forensic investigation to eventually find the man who had broken into a number of homes and raped women.  The writers of A False Report were able to obtain interview materials to tell the story of Marc O’Leary and how he came to live a life that even he described as “depraved.” 

In weaving the three narratives together we learn how police departments can either believe victims no matter how they present and move forward an active investigation or disregard an allegation based on the internal biases and stigmas officers may have regarding how victims should behave.  These responses can lead to either validation and closure or ongoing pain and trauma for victims of sexual assault.

Even though we know that most rapes are committed by someone the victim knows, we can learn a lot from the rapist’s story.  He was not a trauma survivor.  He admitted to having a safe upbringing without any abuse.  He had a stellar military record.  However, he was also a methodical predator who honed his skills and threatened his victims with the possibility that he would post video and photos of them on his pornographic websites. 

As disturbing as all this was to read, and I knew the bones of the story, I was appalled at the history behind the ingrained cultural belief that allegations of sexual assault (particularly those made by women) are more often than not false.  In fact, the Lord Chief Justice of England in 1671, Sir Matthew Hale, laid the groundwork by denouncing women for their maliciousness and tendency to tell false stories.  Thomas Jefferson even wrote in a letter to James Madison of his opposition to harsh punishment for rape, “on account of the temptation women would be under to make it the instrument of vengeance against an inconstant lover, and of disappointment to a rival”. This insistence that women are prone to “contrive false charges” about “imaginary” sexual assaults continued in to the 20^th century by Harvard Law Review founder John Henry Wigmore.  As seen by the 2018 Kavanaugh hearings, we know that there continues to be a deeply held cultural belief that men are to be protected against the false allegations of unhinged women rather than believing in the possibility that a woman could be telling the truth. 

In their book, Armstrong and Miller walk us through the damage that the ongoing belief in false reporting has on the criminal justice system and on the many victims of assault who are left alone and ostracized by friends and family.  Victims who are not believed are not only further traumatized but in their failure to investigate and eventually prosecute the rapist, the criminal justice system is leaving rapists with the opportunity to rape again… and again.   
This book should be required reading for all police departments and prosecutors.  

Book Review: Missoula – Rape and the Justice System in a College Town by Jon Krakauer

Jon Krakauer is an investigative journalist who likes to embed himself in a situation to delve into the intricacies of a situation or experience.  In Missoula, Mr. Krakauer goes to Missoula, Montana to investigate the many systems and personalities that become involved when a rape allegation is made on a college campus.  I have heard interviews with Mr. Krakauer and he has stated that Missoula is not atypical.  He did not pick Missoula because it was different but because it was so similar to other college towns across the nation.

Jon does not leave any stone unturned in telling the stories of rape allegations in this college town that treats its football players as celebrities and heroes, granting the players a sense of entitlement that extends to the women who attend the college.  Mr. Krakauer interviews victims and family members and has access to interviews with the alleged rapists.  He also delves into the criminal justice system and campus investigative process and delineates how the allegations are handled differently in each setting. He is also explicitly describes the judicial process and how defense attorneys and prosecutors are often so concerned with winning that the victims and perpetrators often become pawns in the process, leaving victims to experience more trauma during and after the plea and/or trial process.

Jon Krakauer researched the impact of trauma on victims and is able to incorporate the work of Judith Herman, a clinical professor at Harvard and author of Trauma and Recovery, an important work on interpersonal violence and the trauma that occurs.  David Lisak, an expert on serial rapists and college sexual assault, is an expert witness for one of the trials in Missoula and Mr. Krakauer pulls from his research and expert testimony in order to describe the intricacies of understanding sexual assault.

Jon Krakauer’s greatest message in this book is that the refusal to hold perpetrators accountable is their greatest weapon and the justice systems’ greatest failure. 

Tonic Immobility: Fight, flight, or . . . freeze? Yes. Freeze.

This is a re-post of an article on tonic immobility and sexual assault by Dr. Rebecca Campbell from the University of Michigan.  This was found on http://www.joyfulheartfoundation.org/

Many people have heard of "fight or flight," which is a way our bodies respond to very threatening, stressful situations. It's a biological response in mammals, including humans, that involves gearing up the body to either fight back against the threat or flee from the threatening situation. When the mind recognizes a situation as very threatening to the physical well-being, emotional well-being or even the very survival of the organism, the brain triggers the body to release adrenal hormones, sometimes referred to as "stress hormones." These hormones are what give the body the energy and wherewithal to fight back or get away to safety.

But sometimes, the sudden release of high levels of stress hormones triggers an entirely different reaction: freeze. When this happens, the body can't move and won't move, arms and legs don't fight back and they don't carry the body away to safety.

Why? Why would the body freeze in a threatening situation?

Good question.

Research studies with animals have documented that sometimes the best way to protect the body is to freeze, to play dead, fighting back or fleeing would only prolong the threat and endanger the body even worse (maybe even risk death). In other words, sometimes the safest solution isn't fight-or-flight. The safest option is to freeze and so the brain and body work together?to hold the organism still until the threat has passed.

So, which one? When will the body fight? Flight? Freeze?

Researchers have not yet determined why animals or humans respond with which strategy—in which situation. What is clear is that all three are normal, biological responses to threatening encounters. Researchers have determined that these responses are autonomic, which means they happen automatically without conscious thought or decision making. In other words, we don't get to pause and think about these three different options; the brain picks one quickly and goes with it. It's not something we get to decide. It's not something we get to choose. Thinking it over?weighing the pros and cons might take too long?and that could endanger the survival of the organism, so the brain is hard-wired to make a decision and go with it.

The technical term for the "freeze response" is tonic immobility (TI).

During an episode of tonic immobility, a person enters into a temporary state of paralysis. Typically, this means that the individual can't move his/her arms, legs, hands, feet, etc. The person is frozen and may appear to be dead. Tonic immobility may last for only few moments, or for several minutes, or for much longer periods of time. During the episode, the person may be aware of what's happening to them and may also understand that he/she cannot move.

Recently, researchers discovered that some rape and sexual assault victims experience tonic immobility during the attack. Tonic Immobility can happen whether the assailant is a stranger to the victim, or whether it is someone she/he knows. Victims who experience tonic immobility during the assault freeze. They can't move, they can't fight back, they can't flee. And after the trauma, a person can have difficulty remembering specific details of the event, especially when they freeze while it's happening.

It's important to remember that tonic immobility is an autonomic response, victims don't decide to do this; it's an automatic response of the brain and body, working together to try to protect the survival of the organism.

Tonic immobility can be extremely frightening and confusing to rape and sexual assault victims. Why did I freeze? Why couldn't I move? Why couldn't I scream? Why didn't I fight back? Why was I just stuck there? It's not uncommon for victims to blame themselves for this response, often because they don't understand why they did what they did. And often, not remembering the details of how things happened can bring up feelings of shame, especially when questioned by others. Most people don't know about the "freeze response." Most people don't know that research now tells us that "fight or flight" is actually "fight, flight or freeze." The freeze response, also called called tonic immobility, has been documented in many research studies with sexual assault victims. It is very real, it is very normal, it is completely biological and it is not something victims can control. Nor is their fault.

In my career as a research psychologist, I have had an opportunity to interview many rape survivors who experienced tonic immobility during the assault. None of them ever knew why they froze and because of that, they carried within them tremendous guilt and confusion. When I've told them that what they experienced sounds like tonic immobility, and when I've described to them what tonic immobility is, they are astounded. Some survivors cry in relief, some have jumped up and hugged me, some have sat there in disbelief, asking me to explain it over and over again, just to be sure. To know that this is something normal—something that happens to many survivors and it's not their fault—is incredibly freeing and healing. It can help make one part of a terrible—traumatic crime a bit more understandable.

I have also had the opportunity to talk with police officers, detectives, nurses, doctors, and rape victim advocates about these issues. Many of these professionals are not aware of "fight-flight-or-freeze" or if they are, they don't know that research now shows that some rape and sexual assault victims experience the "freeze response" during the attack. Unfortunately, there are still too many instances where our helping professionals blame victims for tonic immobility and add to victims'shame, guilt, and self-blame. However, as legal and medical system personnel learn about Tonic Immobility, they are able to help victims understand what has happened to them and help them along their journey of healing.

Dr. Rebecca Campbell is a professor of community psychology and program evaluation at Michigan State University. Her research focuses on violence against women—specifically sexual assault and how the legal, medical, and mental systems respond to the needs of rape survivors. She is the author of Emotionally Involved: The Impact of Researching Rape (2002, Routledge), which won the 2002 Distinguished Publication Award from the Association for Women in Psychology. Dr. Campbell has been active in the anti-violence social movement since 1989 and has spent 10 years working as a volunteer rape victim advocate in hospital emergency departments.

- See more at: http://www.joyfulheartfoundation.org/blog/talking-about-tonic-immobility-tonights-svu#sthash.b3bDYmBM.dpuf

Book Reviews: Blackout Girl – Growing Up and Drying Out in America and Picking Up the Pieces Without Picking Up

In September of this year I attended the Office of Victims of Crime conference in New Orleans, LA.  Jennifer Storm, Executive Director of the Victim/Witness Assistance Program in Harrisburg, PA was a keynote speaker on the last day.  Ms. Storm told her story of being raped at the age of twelve and her struggles to deal with the family dysfunction, alcoholism and drug addiction that followed.  Her story was inspiring and hopeful, a narrative of resilience and determination that not only tells of recovery against all odds, but gives hope for those young women who are still struggling with the effects of trauma and its aftermath.

In her book, Blackout Girl – Growing Up and Drying Out in America, Jennifer Storm goes into great detail about her experiences.  She describes the rape, the reaction of her parents and brothers, and her subsequent fall into substance abuse.  She spent many years struggling with addiction and continued to be re-victimized in many ways including being raped again and again and experiencing intimate partner violence.  Where her book excels is in her telling of her struggles in her relationships with her mother and brothers, and how she grows into an understanding of her sexuality.  Her story is inspiring and hopeful.

I have one caveat, however.  When I heard Ms. Storm’s story and saw her book, I had hoped that this would be one I could fully recommend.  I can only recommend it with caution.  Ms. Storm tells her story of rape and substance abuse in great detail.  If you are a person with a trauma and/or history of substance use the details in this book could be triggering. I would recommend that it be read only if you are engaged in some form of ongoing support or therapy and are engaging in self-care.  Advocates and survivors often tell me that they are looking for books to read about other women who have struggled with trauma and addiction. 

Jennifer Storm has also written a guidebook for persons in recovery who are working through victimization and the court process.  It is called Picking Up the Pieces Without Picking Up.  This book is about rebuilding one’s life after the impact of trauma.  It provides exercises for dealing with trauma and addiction, using some Twelve Step (of AA) language with a strong understanding of the impact of trauma.  It also includes a chapter on navigating the criminal justice system.  This guidebook would be a great adjunct to ongoing support through a local domestic violence or sexual assault program and/or in partnership with a recovery sponsor who is knowledgeable about trauma and recovery.

You can find out more about Jennifer Storm at www.jenniferstorm.com