This morning I heard an innocuous report about the New York District Attorney dropping rape charges against Dominique Strauss-Kahn. This was followed by an angry statement from the National Organization for Women which lamented this development as another indication of the mistreatment of women; according to NOW, the action was just another instance in which the past of a rape victim was used improperly against her. I realize that this is a knee jerk reaction expected from NOW, but it ought to be an embarrassment to knees everywhere. The District Attorney revealed to the court that it could not determine when the alleged victim was telling the truth and when she was lying. There had been multiple interviews of the victim, and in each interview she made statements that were revealed to be lies. If the DA could not tell if the complaintant was telling the truth, the DA could not ask a jury to believe her. Conviction in a criminal case has to be based upon proof "beyond a reasonable doubt", and the complaintant could not even get close to that level when speaking to the lawyers who were on her side. To say the least, dropping the charges against DSK is the right thing to do. But there was NOW lamenting this attack on women's rights. It was sad and embarrassing. Certainly, there have been times when women have been mistreated by the system, but that is not the case every time. NOW should know better than just to jump in no matter what the facts.
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