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Rape Crisis praises EE on Deans verdict


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Old 20-08-2016, 13:50
marke09
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Leading charity Rape Crisis has welcomed the way EastEnders presented a shock storyline which saw Dean Wicks acquitted of attempted rape.

Dean (Matt Di Angelo) was on trial for the attempted rape of Roxy Mitchell (Rita Simons), and viewers also know that he raped Linda Carter (Kellie Bright).

Read more at http://www.whatsontv.co.uk/news/east...GPWRosqDO8t.99

But while Linda and Roxy were upset by the outcome, charity Rape Crisis hailed the BBC’s “bold” decision to focus on them, rather than the trial.

A post on the soap’s blog by Rebecca Hitchen, operations co-ordinator at Rape Crisis South London, explained: “We may be angry and frustrated by the fact that Dean does not get the comeuppance he deserves and be shocked that he has got away with his crimes again.

“We know that he is a rapist and that he is a serial offender, and we can predict that he will continue to perpetrate his crimes against women, wherever he ends up.

“But it is an important reality to face, that far too often rapists are not convicted; and justice is not realised. This is why additional support, and other ways to have their voices heard, are so crucial for survivors.”

She highlighted low conviction rates and the prejudices facing rape survivors, adding: “We know that just one in 15 women who are raped make the decision to report to the police.”

ebecca praised the BBC soap for how the storyline had been presented, writing: “EastEnders has now made another bold decision; rather than airing the usual version of a courtroom drama, they instead show the stress and the anxiety survivors and their loved ones experience in the criminal justice system waiting for the outcome, and learning the verdict.”


Read more at http://www.whatsontv.co.uk/news/east...GPWRosqDO8t.99
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Old 20-08-2016, 15:36
Good_boys
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Surprised they're praising this verdict as could deter more victims from reporting rapes.
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Old 20-08-2016, 15:45
Broken_Arrow
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I thought it was a bold decision to have the scum get away with it. EastEnders isn't known for its realism these days but the verdict rang true to real life for once. Sadly I have a feeling it will all be undone when Dean comes back and likely gets murdered by Ronnie and Roxy.
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Old 20-08-2016, 15:46
Whedonite
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I stopped watching EE, but how did the scumbag get away with it?
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Old 20-08-2016, 16:18
mrs.deschanel
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Surprised they're praising this verdict as could deter more victims from reporting rapes.
Look at it the other way - hopefully it will persuade women to report their rape while there is some evidence rather than months later when it's one person's word against another. There was nothing to say he'd raped Linda other than what she said happened. With Roxy there was a witness so I don't know why that wasn't enough. I honestly hope no one here ever has to suffer a rape but if they ever do they need to consider reporting it and going through the indignity of having samples and phoos taken and injuries noted as soon as they can. Once you've washed all of that DNA away and the physical injuries are healed it's just too hard to prosecute. No matter what is decided, even if it's not reported, please go to Rape Crisis and get some support. Rape can be very shameful and keeping that suffering to yourself is harder than asking for help.
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Old 20-08-2016, 16:21
All Of Me
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Laughable.
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Old 20-08-2016, 16:59
Good_boys
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Eastenders could borrow from Wentworth here and have a vigilante gang like The Red Right hand track down Dean and badly injure him as a deterrent...
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Old 20-08-2016, 17:02
Louise_Hart
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It was such a brilliant episode, focusing on the victims instead of the perpetrator was a genius decision.
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Old 20-08-2016, 18:07
soap-lea
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Surprised they're praising this verdict as could deter more victims from reporting rapes.
they worked with Eastenders on the storyline.

right at the start there was an interview,the whole storyline has been about raising awareness to the fact you need to do what Roxy did and report it as soon as possible.

it is a shocking statistic that men get off like Dean has due to lack of evidence, sometimes these things come down to him v her and who is the most "believable" so Roxy and Shirley being torn to shreds in court (as we heard) will have worked in Dean's favour
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Old 20-08-2016, 18:33
trevon1
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It was such a brilliant episode, focusing on the victims instead of the perpetrator was a genius decision.
I agree. It focused more on what Linda went through and sadly it is realistic that there is a low percentage of rapists who get convicted. I think Eastenders did well in making it clear that only Dean was responsible for his actions (and did not victim blame) as well as focused on Linda and Roxy's emotions rather than making it about Dean.
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Old 20-08-2016, 18:39
WhatYouGonnaDo?
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they worked with Eastenders on the storyline.

right at the start there was an interview,the whole storyline has been about raising awareness to the fact you need to do what Roxy did and report it as soon as possible.

it is a shocking statistic that men get off like Dean has due to lack of evidence, sometimes these things come down to him v her and who is the most "believable" so Roxy and Shirley being torn to shreds in court (as we heard) will have worked in Dean's favour
So they showed that you do what Roxy did and report it as soon as possible....and your rapist will still get away with it

I don't think EE know or care what the hell message they are trying to send out, they just want to be controversial (sorry "brave") and pat themselves on the back. They already made the important point of how hard it is for rape victims to get justice with Linda. This was there chance to show the opposite side of things, that if you report early you can get justice. To give victims some hope and encourage them to come forward and speak out. Instead it was pretty much the same out come as when Linda was attacked. Dean gets away with it again. A rehash and imo a cop out.

edit I would also say it that is more unusual on soaps for a rapist to be convicted than not (one of the reasons I applaud Emmerdale for going against the grain and giving Aaron justice) they nearly always get away with it and every soap uses the "reflecting reality" defence EE has.
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Old 20-08-2016, 20:02
soap-lea
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So they showed that you do what Roxy did and report it as soon as possible....and your rapist will still get away with it

I don't think EE know or care what the hell message they are trying to send out, they just want to be controversial (sorry "brave") and pat themselves on the back. They already made the important point of how hard it is for rape victims to get justice with Linda. This was there chance to show the opposite side of things, that if you report early you can get justice. To give victims some hope and encourage them to come forward and speak out. Instead it was pretty much the same out come as when Linda was attacked. Dean gets away with it again. A rehash and imo a cop out.

edit I would also say it that is more unusual on soaps for a rapist to be convicted than not (one of the reasons I applaud Emmerdale for going against the grain and giving Aaron justice) they nearly always get away with it and every soap uses the "reflecting reality" defence EE has.

It isn't a cop out tho, it sadly reflects reality. the conviction rate is less than 6% according to rapecrisis
http://rapecrisis.org.uk/statistics.php
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Old 20-08-2016, 20:05
WhatYouGonnaDo?
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It isn't a cop out tho, it sadly reflects reality. the conviction rate is less than 6% according to rapecrisis
http://rapecrisis.org.uk/statistics.php
I am very aware of the conviction rate but thank you.
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Old 20-08-2016, 20:31
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No EastEnders.
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Old 20-08-2016, 20:34
soap-lea
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I am very aware of the conviction rate but thank you.
then you should know its not realistic for soaps to have every rapist or attempted rapist get found guilty.

In most of the soaps that I can think of there have been lots of guilty verdicts of late and eastenders is the odd one out showing a not guilty and no kind of commupance to the character
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Old 20-08-2016, 20:47
WhatYouGonnaDo?
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then you should know its not realistic for soaps to have every rapist or attempted rapist get found guilty.

In most of the soaps that I can think of there have been lots of guilty verdicts of late and eastenders is the odd one out showing a not guilty and no kind of commupance to the character

I said it is a cop out because EE have already made this same point when Linda wasn't able to see Dean charged for what he did. They made the point of how hard it is for rape to be proven when it isn't reported early enough (one of the primary reasons for the low conviction rate) So Roxy reports her attack early and....Dean still gets away with it. So does that not undermine the point they said they were making with Linda?

When EE are claiming that they want to make a point about low conviction rates and the major cause of the low conviction rates is rape and assault not being reported early then why conclude a storyline like this in a way that is likely to scare victims into keeping quiet for longer? Is that not massively counter productive?

Soaps are not going to change the justice system or society in any major way, but they can make a difference to individual victims by encouraging them to come forward, by showing them they will be believed and that if reported early, conviction is not impossible. It is hard for me to see how scaring them by showing the worst case scenario will not lead to more silence and more rapes going unreported. I don't think I could have come forward after watching this storyline.
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Old 21-08-2016, 01:40
asortafairytale
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I think it's great that they stayed true to realism and highlighted the huge injustice of the whole system with regards to rape cases,instead of just placating viewers with a guilty result. In comparison to say the Pete verdict in Hollyoaks which sadly was quite out of proportion as there wasn't enough evidence to convict beyond reasonable doubt and if real he probably would've been found not guilty.
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Old 21-08-2016, 16:13
BlueEyedMrsP
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I stopped watching EE, but how did the scumbag get away with it?
Well, they didn't show any of the testimony, so it's difficult to say. But Roxy seemed upset that Dean's solicitor brought up her past and that she had a lot of previous partners, which might have influenced the jurors into thinking she was easy/promiscuous/was asking for it. These horrible stereotypes and judgment are easily found today still.
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Old 21-08-2016, 16:24
soap-lea
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Well, they didn't show any of the testimony, so it's difficult to say. But Roxy seemed upset that Dean's solicitor brought up her past and that she had a lot of previous partners, which might have influenced the jurors into thinking she was easy/promiscuous/was asking for it. These horrible stereotypes and judgment are easily found today still.
they also cast doubt on shorleys testimony with stuff about their relationship
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Old 21-08-2016, 16:28
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First time to my knowledge that we've seen an episode directed in this way.

It was an inspired idea to hear (but not see) the judge's summing-up whilst we focussed on the ladies involved. For once in a soap we were spared the dreary not-always-true-to-life court scenes and were allowed to imagine for ourselves how the cross examination of Roxy and Shirley might have played out.

Sorry the verdict went the way it did, but statistically that was probably about right. At least we won't have to see Dean again (never liked him anyway, especially after he developed face fuzz) but it's a pound to a penny that he'll rape again at some point and, possibly, he may eventually kill a girl. But that's all in the future and we won't know about it anyway.
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Old 21-08-2016, 17:09
Adrian_Ward1
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It's definitely true to life.
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Old 21-08-2016, 17:25
andytaylor47
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It was a sad ending but unfortunately true to life. I hope it inspires people that watch to act quickly should they find themselves in a similar situation.
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Old 21-08-2016, 21:45
Sweet_Chocolate
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People watch a show where basically everyone is a scumbag and a lot of characters break the law and have killed, yet lose their shit over Dean getting let off. Really laughable. This is hardly a show to turn to for lessons on morality.
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Old 21-08-2016, 21:59
Steph_Cuckow
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While i know its reality. It is really bad on EE a lot of women and men watch this and they may now feel lile it would be pointless to report. That was their chamce to send a massive message to their viewers that they should always report that act.
I just pray these women know who to turn to aand have people to go to. You are not alone
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Old 21-08-2016, 22:38
kitkat1971
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Look at it the other way - hopefully it will persuade women to report their rape while there is some evidence rather than months later when it's one person's word against another. There was nothing to say he'd raped Linda other than what she said happened. With Roxy there was a witness so I don't know why that wasn't enough. I honestly hope no one here ever has to suffer a rape but if they ever do they need to consider reporting it and going through the indignity of having samples and phoos taken and injuries noted as soon as they can. Once you've washed all of that DNA away and the physical injuries are healed it's just too hard to prosecute. No matter what is decided, even if it's not reported, please go to Rape Crisis and get some support. Rape can be very shameful and keeping that suffering to yourself is harder than asking for help.
Exactly this.

Whilst I hated certain aspects of the Dean rape storylines (mainly making it more about Shirley's relationship with her two sons than Linda's journey, plus whose the daddy) what I did admire is that from the start it was pretty much an abject lesson in what NOT to do (showering, destroying clothes, not telling anybody least of all the Police for months) and maybe, just maybe, future victims would remember it and do the opposite of what Linda did to give themselves the best chance of getting a prosecution, and then conviction.

But the facts are that even when that happens, it is a horrific experience to go through (reporting it, physical examination, testifying) and probably there won't be a conviction as the burden of proof is to prove guilt.

People do need to know that so they go into the process.

A very good friend of mine was with me on Friday and sadly she has been a victim of rape and her trial is due to start in a few weeks. Obviously, it was a hard watch for her and she was reading up about it afterwards but basically she feels it is more honest and it better preparing her by having that verdict rather than a 'happy' ending when probably she won't get one and the Police and CPS have been very honest about that - about how hard it will be and what the conviction stats are.
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