Don't lay the blame for his offences at the door of his victim!
The poor woman suffered a horrendous ordeal, and with the conviction rate for rape being so disgustingly poor in this country, who can blame her for not reporting it at the time.
I am in no way putting the blame on this savages victim, only pointing out that she is now showing relief that other girls are now safe, but what about all those 'other girls' she ignored, but were at the same risk during all those 14 years.
Ohhh...AOG.....not a pity she didn't report him but a tragedy that she wasn't able to report him through no fault of her own.
To report someone for this is so very, very difficult....the lass must have been terrified and we don't know what threats he used, do we?
She is not responsible for his crimes so it's bloody unfair to lay his behaviour during those fourteen years at her door in any way. She also had to live with his freedom don't forget.
/// Sounds to me like you are blaming her for any crimes he may have committed since attacking her. ///
Oh dear how some like to enjoy twisting my words.
My criticism is against her statement regarding other potential victims, not in any way criticising her as a rape victim, and certainly not holding her responsible for any other sex crimes that he may have committed in the last 14 years.
She fled her home and town to hide from him after he threatened to kill her. She was only 19. He had already raped her so perhaps she believed he would kill her. Fear perhaps stopped her reporting the crime at the time. And reliving her hell in court might be easier in her thirties than in her teens.
The main thing is she finally found the courage to report him. We should congratulate her, not castigate her. Classic blame the victim again.
If you are saying that her not reporting him gave him fourteen years to commit crime....therefore had she reported him he wouldn't have been free to commit those crimes you are making her...in part...responsible in your eyes.
Nothing is being twisted because it's you...it's what you said.
I'm content to accept this was a statement of fact rather than allocating blame, but given none of us has "walked in her shoes" maybe a little insensitive. Yes had she found the strength to report it then fewer victims would have resulted. But not everyone can cope with what that entails.
Not all women report rape and sexual assaults, because of fear, (undeserved) shame and the desire to put it behind them and not have to relive the experience during the trial.
Yes, it is a pity that she did not feel that she could come forward earlier! but I like everyone else on this thread will not stoop to judging her on that.
/// If you could learn to be clear and concise in your posts that would be a great help.///
Nearly everyone on this site has their own particular style of expressing their thoughts in the written word, and I manage to understand theirs, so I would expect others to understand mine.
But having said that most are skilled enough to work matters out for themselves, but I suppose there are always going to be a few that are not so skilled.
/// I'm content to accept this was a statement of fact rather than allocating blame, ///
Thank you at last someone that is prepared to understand where I am coming from, very easy to attach such emotive words as this /// "Classic blame the victim again" ///.
Most of you should know my feelings about such animals as this creature, and my utter sympathy for their victims.
If he has attacked other women, any of them could have reported him to the police. For all we know, those attacks may have pre-dated this one. Rather than say it is a pity she did not come forward earlier, she should be praised for having the courage to report it.
So in essence your criticism is that she did not come forward earlier, which is juxtaposed against her statement about it now being a little safer for women?
As the Stuart Hall and Jimmy Saville have proved, victims of rape and/or sexual abuse can bury it away for years, or even decades - and I think that those of us who have no idea of what kind of psychological trauma this poor woman went through, should abstain from making judgement calls on how long it took her to come forward.
But then you go on to say that he's had fourteen years to rape other women.
The word 'because' links these two together, forming a causality. You're saying that because she did not report the crime at the time he had years to rape others.
I'm not saying the same thing. I'm saying that it's a pity that she didn't feel she could report it earlier, but what I mean is that she's been carrying this around for over a decade. It would have been psychologically better for her to have reported it at the time, and begin the healing process then - not now.