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Evelyn Wingar

Aughenbaugh

English 12

30 january 2017

Gender Differences in Sex Crimes

1 out of every 10 men are raped or sexually assaulted (Victims of Sexual Violence:

Statistics). Sexual crimes are not being justified. More and more victims are not getting the

justice they deserve, especially men.These crimes should not be treated different just because of

the gender differences. The legislation should be changed to make women and men more equal

in the court system of sexual crimes.

Multiple crimes involving the male as the victim vary. In Melbourne Florida 2005, a thirty

year old woman escaped a jail term despite from being guilty of having sexual intercourse with a

fifteen year old boy. Diane Nicole Bennett, thirty, pleaded guilty to one count of sexual

penetration, but not until two years later that she got 12 months of jail time and 18 months of

suspension. Weve seen the courts consistently hand down this double standard where if the

perpetrator has been male, one feels certain the man would get a custodial sentence, says the

Melbourne child psychologist Michael Carr-Gregg. The court also put the defendants prior

drinking problem as a part of the crime saying it was a foolish lapse. Karen Ellis also lived in

Melbourne, she was only jailed for six months for having sexual intercourse with a different

fifteen year old boy. Ellis escaped jail with initially a suspended sentence but that was overturned

after an appeal. Tennis Couch Hopper was sent to jail for more than three years for having sex

with a seventeen year old girl. (Courts Accused of Double Standards over Child Sex

Sentencing) Sarah Bench-Salorio sexually assaulted an eleven, twelve, and thirteen year old
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boy. She was supposed to face over sixty years, but the judge only gave her a total of six years.

(Female Sex Offenders: Double Standards)

It is hard for boys to think of themselves as victims, spoke Richard Gartner, children

psychologist. He also says that adult sexual advances can be confusing to boys who are easily

aroused physically, but may be uncomfortable emotionally. Most offenses when a boy is sexually

assaulted or raped are almost never reported because experts say that most males are less likely

to report than females.(More women charged in sex cases.) Susan Naron worked for nine years

with victims of sex crimes and has only has one male. They are embarrassed, she says.(Double

standard: Female sex offenders can get Sweetheart Deal.) Victims of female sex offenders can

suffer various aftermaths such as emotional scars, addiction to drugs and alcohol, and sexual

dysfunction.(Female sex offenders: Double standards.)

Society says boys should be sexually active and that any kind of sex from a female is a gift.

Sexual encounters with older women are looked at as crowning achievements instead

pedophilia.(Double standard: unfairness in sentencing for female rapists. Wheres the equality.)

Jurors look at these cases as a right passage into manhood than a criminal act. Men are taught in

this life that women are already sexual objects because of how society describes them..(Double

standard: Female sex offenders can get sweetheart deal.) Boys will be boys, and we will allow

bad behavior from women because all boy want is sex. This damaging system tells girls that

they are worthless after rape, but it has a disgusting flipside for boys, You have worth now. You

are a god. The courts do seem to excuse womens behaviors far more than men, says Karen

Flanagen of The Child Protection Group Childwise.(Double standard: Unfairness in sentencing

for female rapists; Wheres the equality?) Males are told constantly that sex is awesome, and

that they should sleep with as many women as possible.

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In 2006, a boy named Jason Eickmeyer was struggling with the devestation of being sexual

assualted by his teacher when he was fifteen. The tragedy happened back in 2003 and this young

man became more and more broken as he grew older. He thought, at first, that he was in love

with her but was mistaken. People knew the affair was happening but no one stepped it. Jasons

grades plummeted, he quit wrestling, and kept getting suspended from school. Traci Tapp,

twenty-six, was arrested two years after the happenings. Mrs. Eickmeyer, Jasons mother, states

If it would have been a male, he would have been arrested right away. We just dont take it

seriously, spoke Richard Gartner. Tapp eventually pleaded guilty to offensive touching and got

zero jail time. The only penalty she received was a $225 fine and she was not allowed to teach in

any schools in New Jersey.(Female sex offenders: Double standards.)

There is a little deal in the courts when it comes to female sex offender. This deal is called

The Sweetheart Deal. The Sweetheart Deal, is a favorable arrangement for the female

offender because she is a female who is said to have done a males crime. She then, majority of

the time, gets off on a much lighter sentence than he would if he did the same crime. The original

laws for sex offenders, females or males, if the victim is under sixteen and the perpetrator is over

eighteen is five years in prison plus fines. If the victim is under fourteen and the perpetrator is

over eighteen, then they should get a life sentence with fines. Unfortunately, these laws get

overlooked if the perpetrator is female.(Double standard: Female sex offenders can get

Sweetheart Deal,)

Rape culture says men always want sex so you cant be a victim, so you cant be a victim of

sexual assault, spoke community educator Amelia Parkes of S.A.F.E Inc. There is a perception

out there among people that there is NO such thing as a male sex victim, says district attorney

John Weddle.(Double standard: Female sex offenders can get Sweetheart Deal,) Many
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people say that the traits that we were created with are reasons for our genders to be so different.

The male traits are described as strength, independence, aggressiveness, self-control, and

rationality. The female traits are described as soft, sensitive, accepting, loving and intuitive.

Aggressiveness, unchecked by sensitivity and gentleness is said to be a basic trait for rapists. In

that case, would not ALL men be considered rapists then? Men are getting into trouble because

this society is only concerned with how women are treated when it comes to sexual assault.

Women who are suxually abused are victims of Statutory Rape, but rarely men ever get the

justice of being victims of overaged women. Rape is perhaps the foremost male fantasy in our

society, says Andra Medea, author of the book Against Rape.(Against Rape.)

Women charged in such crimes are given unfairly short charges compared to men. Only

twenty-eight percent of women will actually go to prison for their sexual assault crimes. Also

most prosecutors try and cover up what the woman did with a past problem or addiction they

had. They have no reason to bring up past experiences that have nothing to do with the present

case. Factors that are unrelated to the case is a distraction for the jury and the judge themselves.

Another thing, not all men have those traits. Not all men are bound to be rapists.(Rape culture

fueled by double standard)

The Judicial System should not be based on what gender you are, especially sexual criminal

acts. People should all be charged the same. A sexual assault is a sexual assault. A victim is a

victim, just because our bodies were created differently and do not function the same way does

not mean that these crimes do not affect us the same ways. People are still going to go through

some stages of PTSD, depression, anxiety, and other problems these wrongdoings cause. We all

bleed red, we all cry tears, and most importantly, we are all humans.
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Courts Accused of double standards over child sex sentencing, ABC Premium News.com. N.d.

News Paper Source Plus. Web. 11 Jan. 2017.

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June 2006. Web. 19 Jan. 2017.

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Newspaper of Winston Churchill High School, 2017. Web. 20 Jan. 2017.

Medea, Andra and Kathleen, Thompson. Against Rape. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux,

1974. Print.

Moore, William. Double Standard: Female Sex Offenders Can Get the Sweetheart Deal, Sun

Herald. The SunHerald, 2017. Web. 19 Jan. 2017.

Toit Du, Louise. Sexual Specificity, Rape Law, Reform, and the Feminist Quest for Justice,

Department of Philosophy, 2012. Web. 19 Jan. 2017.

Victims of Sexual Violence: Statistics. Rainn.org. RAINN, 2016. Web. 19 Jan. 2017.