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Shipton, Schollum vs Jane Doe Page 7 - Further Reaction to
Not Guilty Verdict |
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Photo / Mark Mitchell Women protesting against the
treatment of rape cases by police and the courts were met by a thin blue line
of women police officers in The move by But it appeared to anger some of
the 200 marchers who later burned an effigy of a policeman outside the
capital's High Court. The front door to the Central
Police Station, just around the corner from the march's start point in "These young women are
motivated, they are talented, and they are the face of policing in the 21st
century - not going back 30-odd years when most of my staff were not even
born ... I think it defused a lot of their anger." Inspector Cowan said 30 per cent
of Anger flared when one of the
protesters detailed her own experiences of sexual assault and rape. She then
tried to present her written statement to police, and became agitated when Mr
Cowan initially refused to accept it. "That was a publicity
stunt," Mr Cowan said. Similar marches, which coincided
with International Women's Day, also were held in In Although most were women, plenty
of men, children and the elderly showed their support. The range of reasons for attending
varied greatly. Some people felt suspended Auckland District Commander Clint
Rickards should not be reappointed, despite his acquittal on sex charges.
Others wanted to support rape victims in general while others called for
changes to the law so juries could be told about any previous convictions for
people accused of sex crimes. One 37-year-old rape victim said
she felt totally let down by the justice system when she faced her alleged
rapist in court 15 years ago and he was acquitted of the charges. "I was put on trial as a
victim. They cross-examined me and [it felt like they] found me guilty." The Green Party expressed its
support for the marchers. Social services spokeswoman Sue Bradford, herself a
rape survivor, said: "Some form of public apology and acceptance of
guilt by the police for what has happened seems necessary." |