Perhaps the best way to assist a sexual assault victim before the trial of her assailant is to help her to prepare for it. Although no two cases are exactly alike, you can encourage a sexual assault victim to take certain steps prior to her appearance in court that may make her feel ready for the day and thus ease her fears.
● Perhaps with the help of a victim advocate, you should encourage her to request from the district attorney a copy of the signed statement she gave to the police when she reported the assault. It is important evidence, and reviewing it will refresh her memory of what happened. Studying the material builds confidence and helps a person avoid making mistakes.
● Offer to accompany her to the scene of the crime, which may help her to clarify her memory of the assault. Provided she wishes to revisit the location, before doing so she should consult with the district attorney and a victim advocate on the matter. Do not pressure her; it should be her decision.
● To familiarize her with the setting, offer to accompany her to the courtroom several days before the trial. Note the position of the witness stand and the jury box, as well as the direction in which she will be facing during her testimony. If possible, you or her victim advocate could sit in public seating directly in her line of sight so she will have a friendly face to see as she testifies.
● She will be required to describe under oath the details of what took place, she will need to know the appropriate terms to use when describing certain sex acts. The use of slang terms may diminish her credibility. With practice, she may become more accustomed to using the appropriate terms. You may help her to practice by offering to listen to her say these words.
● In consultation with a victim advocate, you may offer to help potential witnesses with transportation, childcare, or even lodging during the trial.
● Remind her to request that she be consulted about any possible plea agreement in advance. The assailant may seek to avoid a trial by pleading guilty to a lesser charge. He may also wait until the last minute to do so. The victim may be happy to be able to spare herself the ordeal of a trial, but she may also feel that a plea agreement would be less than just. While the decision to accept a plea is made by the district attorney in consultation with the judge, the victim nevertheless deserves an explanation of this decision and a chance to influence aspects of the plea deal. One advantage of a plea bargain is that, unlike a trial conviction, it cannot be challenged on appeal.
● Suggest that she ask for a single prosecutor to be assigned to the case at her first meeting with the district attorney. There are a few reasons why she should not want the case to be shuffled between several prosecutors. First, having a single prosecutor means she will not have to repeat the story each time a new person is assigned to the case. Second, it takes time for a new prosecutor to be brought up to speed, which, in turn, could delay the trial date. Although it may not be possible to have the same prosecutor assigned to the case throughout, it is still helpful for the victim to discourage the shuffling of prosecutors by stating the aforementioned concerns at the beginning of the process.
● Encourage her to consult with a victim advocate and the prosecuting attorney on how best to prepare for her testimony and cross-examination. The defense attorney will try to undermine her credibility as a witness and perhaps imply that her conduct represented a misunderstanding between her and the accused. She should be prepared for the defense attorney to ask leading questions about her sexual behavior, her use of alcohol or drugs, how she communicated her lack of consent to the perpetrator, how some of her actions could be interpreted as her giving consent, and her motives for making such a serious claim to law enforcement.
THE BASICSShe should know that nearly every state has passed what are called rape shield laws, which limit the ability of the defense to introduce an accuser’s prior sexual behavior into testimony. It is important to note, however, that these laws do not apply to the accuser’s prior sexual history with the accused. She should be prepared to defend her actions against the suggestion that she gave the perpetrator consent or bears a degree of responsibility for what happened.
● Suggest that she request from the district attorney a list of questions that are likely to be asked by the defense during cross-examination. Under the guidance of a victim advocate and the prosecutor, and possibly with your help, she may wish to practice responses by recording them and listening to how she sounds. In addition, she should consider the clothes she will wear at the trial. Being properly dressed (no jeans or sneakers) can positively influence how she is viewed by the jury.
Sex Essential Reads● Once the trial begins, the evidentiary information (including her testimony) will become part of the public record. Although her name may be withheld, some information about the case could appear in her local media. Recommend that she talk to a victim advocate about her right to confidentiality and how she may respond to information made public. It can be extremely difficult for a victim of sexual assault to give testimony at the trial of her attacker, especially when the trial may be her first time seeing the face of her assailant since the rape. Your support and understanding before and during the trial can help her to avoid being traumatized by the courtroom experience and help her manage what comes next.
*Adapted from When the Subject Is Rape by Alan W. McEvoy, Ph.D. © 2023 by Alan W. McEvoy. By permission of the publisher.